Germany to deliver 25 Leopard 1A5 tanks to Ukraine

The German concern Rheinmetall will deliver 25 Leopard 1A5 tanks, five armored repair and evacuation vehicles and two training tanks to Ukraine, Der Spiegel said on Tuesday.

The total value of the order amounted to several tens of millions of euros and includes not only the delivery package but also the cost of training, logistics, spare parts, field commissioning and repair. The delivery package was funded from the budget by order of the German Government, the media said. 

The Bundeswehr stopped using Leopard 1A5 tanks ten years ago. However, they were in warehouses. After the start of Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine last year, a decision was made to reactivate them.

The publication reports that in September, due to problems, Kyiv refused to accept ten old tanks of this model. The tanks required additional repairs. Since Ukraine could not find trained technical personnel and spare parts, Kyiv saw no point in supplying them.

Rheinmetall also plans to deliver 14 tanks of the latest Leopard 2A4 model to Ukraine next year.