Poland submits application for “Leopard 2” delivery
Poland wants to deliver German "Leopard 2" tanks to Ukraine and has submitted an application in Berlin.
The federal government now wants to examine it with “due urgency”. But Poland wants more: the EU should contribute to the delivery costs.
Poland has officially applied to the federal government to be able to deliver “Leopard 2” battle tanks to Ukraine. Germany has “already received our request,” Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak explained on Twitter:
He also called on the government in Berlin to join the coalition of countries supporting Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks. “This is our common cause, because it’s about the security of all of Europe,” said the minister.
If necessary, Poland would act without permission
Poland is putting pressure on its allies in the matter. The week before last, President Andrzej Duda said the government in Warsaw had decided to hand over 14 Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine. In order to deliver tanks manufactured in Germany to other countries, the approval of the federal government is always required.
On Monday, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced that he would ask Germany for this approval. If Poland ultimately does not receive approval from Germany, they want to act within the framework of a small coalition, Morawiecki said. They will then “relocate tanks to Ukraine together with others”.
Berlin wants to check quickly
A government spokesman confirmed receipt of the application and informed the dpa news agency on request that the federal government now wanted to examine the Polish export application. Such applications would be “examined with the necessary urgency in line with established procedures and arms export guidelines,” he said.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock declared on Sunday evening that Germany would not block the possible export of “Leopard” tanks from other countries to Ukraine. “At the moment the question hasn’t been asked, but if we were asked, we wouldn’t stand in the way,” she told French television channel LCI at the time. In doing so, she answered the question of what would happen if Poland delivered “Leopard” tanks to Ukraine.
Poland wants to ask the EU for compensation
Poland also wants to involve the EU in supplying the tanks to Ukraine. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said at a press conference: “We will apply to the European Union for a refund. It will be another goodwill test.”
