Finland could supply Leopard tanks to Ukraine, its president says – POLITICO
Finland could increase its military aid to Ukraine by sending Leopard 2 tanks, its president said on Thursday.
In news agency for STTSauli Niinistö added that Finland is also ready to contribute if a common European defense aid package is established for Ukraine.
This mirrors recent comments from other senior Finnish politicians such as Defense Minister Mikko Savola. who announced last Saturday that Finland is preparing its 12th aid package for Ukraine and is considering sending tanks. The chairman of the parliament’s defense committee, Antti Häkkänen, has also said that Finland is ready to supply tanks to Ukraine, but said in a recent interview that the big NATO countries, such as France and Germany, must take the lead.
Niinistö also moderated expectations: “The number of tanks [to be sent to Ukraine] cannot be large, because Finland borders Russia and is not part of NATO. There are about 200 Leopard 2 main battle tanks in Finland – about a tenth of all Leopards in Europe.
Certain restrictions have been placed on the re-export of German-made Leopard 2 tanks. Berlin has so far been reluctant to send heavy German weapons to Kiev, even if it comes from another EU country, but there may be signs of a thaw in its stance on the matter.
Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Wednesday that the Polish “Leopard tank company will be transferred to Ukraine as part of international coalition building,” adding that “such a decision is already [taken] in Poland.”
In response to Duda’s comments, German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck, who also oversees arms export controls, dismissed the concerns that Germany might not allow this. He said that “Germany should not stand in the way when other countries make decisions to support Ukraine, no matter what decision Germany makes.”
However, Germany itself is still hesitant to send its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, and Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany needs to closely coordinate such efforts with its partners, first and foremost. United States.