The western states want to support Ukraine with modern battle tanks.
But the pledges of many countries are followed by hesitant action.
Berlin – For several weeks, Olaf Scholz (SPD) was seen as the main reason for the lack of tank deliveries to Ukraine.
Barely a month after he agreed to the deliveries, the tide seems to have turned.
Now Germany is acting as the driving force behind a western armored alliance and must urge its partners to live up to their promises.
Observers are already talking about a fiasco with far-reaching consequences.
Ukraine war: tank alliance without tanks?
Germany becomes the driving force
The initial situation: The EU states want to deliver a total of 62 tanks of the Leopard 2 type to Ukraine by the end of March, divided into two battalions.
About half of the tanks are to be provided by Germany and Poland.
The federal government has increased its original commitment again.
Instead of 14, 18 main battle tanks from the Bundeswehr stocks are to be delivered by the end of March.
That's more than half of the first battalion.
Poland already acted as a driving force in the debate about the supply of main battle tanks and massively increased the pressure on Germany at the beginning of the year.
At the height of the debate, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced that he would definitely deliver German battle tanks to Ukraine.
Even if you didn't get permission from Berlin.
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Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) drives a Leopard 2 tank at a military training area in Augustdorf.
© Federico Gambarini/dpa
Leopard 2 tanks for Ukraine: Netherlands backs down on deliveries
However, it is the other states that are responsible for the fact that the European tank alliance could become a non-starter.
At the beginning of the year, many governments were still putting pressure on the Chancellor.
Now they don't seem to be able to remember their own promises.
The situation in the Netherlands is symptomatic of the circumstances.
18 Leopard 2 tanks - as many as Germany - were initially promised - but ultimately not a single one will be delivered.
The reason: The Netherlands does not own any Leopard 2 tanks, but only leased them from Germany.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Defense referred to Berlin as the reason for the decision.
Shortly thereafter, the federal government announced that it had received no official request from The Hague about the availability of the tanks.
Several countries withdraw main battle tank commitments - Finland and Denmark have no Leopard 2 to deliver
Denmark also initially opted out of an armored alliance.
Most of the 44 Leopard 2 tanks are on a NATO mission in Estonia.
The government in Copenhagen wants to keep the rest for national defense.
In Germany, too, voices have recently been raised again and again that doubted the Bundeswehr's operational capability due to the deliveries.
The Spaniards, who had been among the strongest supporters of an armored alliance, also became more cautious in their announcements.
Madrid needs a large part of the tanks for national defense.
Probably also to deter Morocco in the dispute over the exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla.
Finland immediately canceled the delivery of battle tanks to Ukraine, citing its own almost 1,300-kilometer border with Russia.
Instead, they want to deliver three mine clearing tanks.
And Sweden initially wanted to tie the provision of Leopard 2 tanks to NATO membership.
Tank “fiasco”: Pistorius criticizes allies as “announcement world champions”
Chancellor Scholz suddenly went from being the great blocker to the driving force and had to drive in the tanks from his allies.
His Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) could not resist a certain mockery.
The 62-year-old spoke of “announcement world champions” with a view to the lack of commitments from the partners.
In a report on Thursday , Die Zeit
also quoted another unspecified member of the federal government, who spoke of a "beauty contest" among western countries.
It would be about who can be “Ukraine's best friend”.
The US magazine
Tablet
spoke of a "fiasco" in view of the sudden unwillingness to deliver.
The hesitation of the allies would have created exactly the scenario that the Chancellor wanted to avoid with his initial reluctance: an endeavor organized and led by Berlin.
This image is also grist to the mill of critics of arms deliveries to Ukraine.
As a result, further military support for Ukraine could increasingly lose support in broader society.
Germany provides 18 Leopard 2: first tank battalion for Ukraine finally complete
At the Munich Security Conference almost two weeks ago, the promises of the remaining allies were again intensified.
NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg appealed to Sweden, Denmark and Spain, among others, "to do everything in their power to supply modern weapons - including armored vehicles and battle tanks".
Tanks, drones, anti-aircraft defenses: weapons for Ukraine
Tanks, drones, anti-aircraft defenses: weapons for Ukraine
Ultimately, Sweden then announced that it wanted to deliver ten main battle tanks to Kiev.
Together with three tanks from Portugal and the 18 "Leos" from Germany, the first battalion was there for Kiev.
In the second combat unit, the last details still have to be clarified.
Should Spain supply five tanks, this battalion would also be complete with supplies from Poland (14), Norway (8) and Canada (4).
It remains to be seen whether the two battalions can really be delivered by the end of March.
However, the deployment of the 62 main battle tanks could be an indication that the Western military alliance is less united in its approach than it appears.
(
fd)
List of rubrics: © Federico Gambarini/dpa
