Leopard tanks may arrive in 6 weeks with German approval

The head of German defense industry contractor Rheinmetall said the company could begin its Cold War era. Leopard 1 main battle tank In Ukraine in 6 weeks if national authorities approve the plan. This official statement only increases the pressure on the German government to turn this transfer into a green light. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz supports all of this, despite growing support from his own Social Democratic Party and others in the current coalition government for giving tanks to the Ukrainian army. It is reported that there is.

If German officials approve the transfer of Leopard 1, they will join many other countries they have recently sent. Or the announced plan To send Tanks and other armored vehicles To Ukraine. It is unclear how Ukrainians will be trained to operate or maintain tanks, and how the various necessary supply chains will be established. Anyway, this is part of a recent widespread promotion by Ukraine’s international partners to bring high-end weapons into the country, such as surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles, and artillery systems.

This is all because Russian troops appear to be preparing to launch a reactivated attack to secure various purposes in and around the Donbus region of eastern Ukraine. Over the weekend, commercial satellite imagery provider Maxar Technologies released images showing Russian armored vehicles, cannons and trucks extending along a road about eight miles east of the Ukrainian city of Kharkov. The convoy, capable of accommodating hundreds of vehicles in total, appeared to be heading south towards the front line.

Before getting into the latest news below War zone You can first understand the current state of the conflict in Ukraine Here..

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Posted: 2:35 PM EST —

German newspaper Handelsblatt Publish comments Rheinmetall CEO Armin Pappergar talks about the possibility of moving 50 Leopard 1s to Ukraine earlier today. Pappergar said the first tank could head to Ukraine within six weeks of the transfer being approved, and it would take about three months for the Ukrainian army to receive all the tanks.

If the transfer is allowed, Pappergar states that the tank will be sent via Rheinmetall Italy, an Italian subsidiary of Rheinmetall, and the vehicle in question belonged to the Italian army, which previously operated Leopard 1 until 2008. It may have been. Strict control over the relocation of German-origin weapons systems from one foreign country to another.German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht I was saying again On weekends “now reached the limit” regarding what the country can move directly to Ukraine.

It is unclear how long it will actually take to put this plan into action.German Chancellor Olaf Scholz Reportedly postponed creation Final decision on whether to allow tanks, and an unspecified number of German-made Marder infantry fighting vehicleGo to Ukraine for several reasons.

Approving the transfer via a third country, whether Leopard 1 is a former Italian or not, eases German political concerns about such transactions, including the fear of direct opposition from Russian authorities. can do. German officials The country is working on weaning In itself, it comes from natural gas supplied by Russia, which continues to be an important source of energy today. With that in mind, Germany has already approved third-party transfers to Ukraine. Former East German BMP-1 Infantry fighting vehicle From Czech Republic..

There is another concern about how easily the Ukrainian army can actually start service after receiving Leopard 1. The Ukrainian army has no experience in operating or maintaining this type of tank, nor has it established a supply chain for spare parts or ammunition for 105mm guns.

Rheinmetall Pappagar said Handelsblatt He believed that Ukrainian personnel with certain unspecified existing skill sets could be trained to operate Leopard 1 in a time frame measured in days. “We need to train a little more intensively about Leopard 1, but if Ukrainians want tanks, we need to find a way,” said the German Liberal Democratic Party, which is now part of Parliament. The coalition that runs the defense policy spokesperson, Marcus Faber, told the newspaper separately.

In the context of this potential relocation, an old German report comparing a variant of the Leopard 1A5 with an interesting Soviet T-72M1 tank evaluated that the latter design was not well suited for defensive operations. This certainly has the potential to be related to the Ukrainian army.

Regardless of whether the Ukrainian army will eventually receive a Leopard 1 tank, other countries have steadily announced plans to offer a more substantive military aid package in the last two weeks or so. Just this weekend, the British government in particular, Transfer of anti-ship missiles We have not identified the exact weapon system in question, but in Ukraine. So far, there is nothing to substantiate rumors that British authorities are planning or may already be transporting Harpoon anti-ship cruise missiles.

Interestingly, the video clip shown below has appeared, showing a video clip made in the UK. Martlet missile It has been adopted in the role of surface-to-air in Ukraine.British authorities have previously Confirmed transfer of Starstreak A surface-to-air missile launched from the shoulder, also known as the Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) to Ukraine, but the delivery of the Martlet has not been officially announced. Martlet missiles can be launched from the same handheld and pedestal mount launchers as Starstreak.Martlet missiles can also be used Against certain maritime threats Other targets on the surface, depending on the configuration Of a complete weapon system..

The US military is currently looking for ways to train more Ukrainians about the use of Switchblade wandering ammunition. It is called a “suicide drone”. At first Appeared 4 weeks ago That the U.S. government supplies hundreds of these weapons Here, To the Ukrainian army.Over the weekend, the Pentagon revealed it Recently trained Ukrainians In the United States to use these drones. Members of the Ukrainian army were in the country before the invasion began to attend an unrelated training course at the Navy Small Crafts and Techniques Training School (NAVSCIATTS) in Biloxi, Mississippi. US Secretary of Defense Austin spoke with those individuals yesterday before returning to Ukraine.

A senior US defense official said today that there is no evidence of an S-300 long-range surface-to-air missile battery. The transfer of Slovakia to Ukraine Last week it was already destroyed. It was reported that the S-300 battery was among the targets destroyed during a Russian strike at an airport servicing a city in the south of Dnipro over the weekend. Local Ukrainian officials said the airport was virtually destroyed as a result.

Ukrainian authorities Asked repeatedly More tanks and other armored vehicles, and other high-end weapon systems in the last few weeks. This is because the focus of the Russian military’s main operations has shifted to the eastern and southeastern regions of the country. Satellite images released by Maxar Technologies to Russia’s large convoy over the weekend could include hundreds of vehicles moving south towards the forefront of Donbus in eastern Ukraine, launching a new major attack. The latest signs that it may be happening.

According to the latest assessment of the conflict by the British Ministry of Defense, Russian troops continue to bombard Ukrainian-controlled areas of Donbus, but so far many of their attacks have been repelled.British officials have also warned of possible adoption by Russian troops. Controversial white phosphorus shells In their ongoing battle to fully secure Mariupol.Its strategic southeastern port city in the Sea of ​​Azov is besieged 1 month or moreHowever, the Ukrainian resistance pocket continues to hold up. Securing this area completely is an important element of Russia’s larger goal of securing an overpass to the occupied Crimean Peninsula.

U.S. senior defense officials say there are no signs that a new Russian attack on Donbus is about to begin, but some troops withdrawing from the northern region of Ukraine appear to be heading in that direction. rice field.The individual also said there were concerns that Russian troops might adopt. Same catastrophic tactics That they are using in Mariupol against other Ukrainian cities.

There are also signs that as a result of previous battles, some of the Russian battalion tactics have completely disabled the battle.

Fierce fighting in eastern Ukraine is certainly continuing. Thousands of civilians have already been evacuated from this part of the country. Ukrainian officials specifically say that about 160,000 people have fled the city of Kramatorsk.Russian Last week’s missile strike At least 57 people, including five children, were killed and 114 were injured at the shelter station.

Russian troops have now fired more than 1,500 Ballistic missiles and cruise missiles According to the US military, it has been a Ukrainian target since the invasion began. A new photo showing the Kh-35U anti-ship cruise missile, one of the missiles used by Russia in conflict, has appeared and has a slogan. Given that Ukrainian warships have been virtually non-factors in combat to date, it is possible that Russian troops are using these weapons in a secondary land attack role. Other anti-ship cruise missiles..

The following video is reportedly Turkish made bilactal TB2 armed drone Moving in the southwestern Odesa region of Ukraine.

The photos and videos below show the remains of another Russian helicopter shot down in Ukraine. The Mi-8MTSh hip was reportedly destroyed on March 4th.

The video clip below shows what looks like a member of the Ukrainian army engaging an aircraft in MANPADS during an aerial attack.

The tweet video below shows Ukrainian Georgian volunteers armed with a variety of weapons, including Javelin, NLAW anti-tank guided missiles, and Stinger MANPADS.You can read more about all of these shoulder missiles Here..

The video below shows the feeling of the wreckage of the war that Ukraine would have put a lot of effort into cleaning up the country every time the current conflict ended.

Austrian Prime Minister Karl Nehammer said he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow today. Nehammer will be the first western leader to meet Putin since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in February. Austrian leaders recently met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kieu. A Number of European leaders Have got I just made that trip..

We will continue to update this post with new information until we specify otherwise.

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