Germany terminates agreement to establish repair center for Ukrainian Leopard tanks in Poland – media
The German government terminates the agreement to establish a repair center for Ukrainian Leopard tanks in Poland.
This was reported by the Handelsblatt publication. It will be officially announced in the near future.
According to the newspaper’s interlocutors, the reason for this decision was the Polish side’s inflated price expectations. Earlier, Spiegel’s interlocutors noted that the Polish defense company PGZ intends to receive 100,000 euros for the initial diagnosis of tanks, while in Germany, this service usually costs about 12,000 euros.
It is noted that Ukrainian soldiers need a way to make damaged western-made battle tanks fit for battle again.
The German Ministry of Defense reported that the Leopard 2 tanks damaged in Ukraine will now be repaired in Germany and, possibly, Lithuania. According to the spokesperson, the repair of the tanks supplied by Germany can begin right now.
In March, after a long period of hesitation, Germany handed over 18 modern Leopard 2 A6 tanks to Ukraine. Other partners also promised to supply, including Poland.
In April, at the US Air Force base in Ramstein, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced the opening of a Leopard tank repair center in Poland. He noted that the German-Polish joint venture was important for Ukraine: the plant was to repair damaged tanks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces delivered from the front.
The center was supposed to open in late May.
According to the plan, the joint venture was to be organized by two German arms companies, Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, and PGZ was to open a tank repair plant on its territory. The German government promised to cover the cost of repairing the Leopard.
Spiegel’s military industry sources believe that the Polish authorities are deliberately delaying the construction of the plant for political reasons. According to the newspaper, the government in Warsaw is waging a regular campaign against Berlin, and Poland’s ruling Law and Justice party does not miss an opportunity to criticize the German leadership.
