“A Canadian Royal Air Force plane departed from Halifax carrying the first Leopard 2 tank that Canada is sending to Ukraine. Canada stands with the people of Ukraine and we will continue to supply the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the equipment they need to win”.
Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand announced it on Twitter, sharing images and a video of the tank’s shipment.
“Tanks are on their way to help Ukraine. Canada’s first Leopard 2 has departed. Canada’s support for Ukraine is unwavering,” he wrote in another tweet.
Handelsblatt newspaper: “14 Leopards from Germany”
Ukraine could receive up to 160 Leopard 1 main battle tanks from German industrial stocks. Handelsblatt reports it citing the German industrial circles. The Rheinmetall and FFG companies – writes the newspaper – could repair a large part of their existing vehicles and make them available for export to Ukraine, after yesterday the federal government authorized manufacturers to send Leopard 1 tanks to Kiev. The manufacturer Flensburger Fahrzeugbau (FFG) claims to have 99 Leopard 1s and Rheinmetall has another 88 tanks. Leopard 1 is the forerunner of the more modern Leopard 2, of which Ukraine will receive 14 units from Germany.
