Poland submitted a request to Germany to transfer Leopard tanks to Ukraine. NATO claims the decision ‘will be made soon’

Polish authorities submitted a request to transfer Leopard tanks to Ukraine.

Mariusz Blaszczak, Minister of Defense of Poland, announced this on Twitter.

He also noted that he was appealing to Berlin to join a coalition of countries that are ready to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks.

“The Germans have already received our request to consent to transfer Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. I also appeal to the German side with a request to join the coalition of countries supporting Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks. This is our common cause, as we are talking about the security of entire Europe!,” Blaszczak wrote.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on January 24. During the meeting, the issue of transferring tanks to Ukraine was also discussed.

At a joint press conference, Jens Stoltenberg shared that the decision to transfer Leopard tanks “will be made soon.”

“France, the United Kingdom, and other allies have announced that they will provide tanks. I welcome these statements. At this critical point in the war, we must provide Ukraine with heavier and more modern equipment, and we must do so faster. That is why I welcome our discussion today. We discussed the issue of battle tanks. Consultations between the Allies will continue, and I am confident that we will soon find a solution,” Stoltenberg stated.

The day before, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius claimed that the decision to transfer tanks to Ukraine will take time.

According to him, Germany should consider many factors and will not make a hasty decision.

“It’s not just a matter of supplying or not supplying these tanks, but weighing the consequences of inaction as well as action,” Pistorius said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba mentioned that five countries were ready to transfer tanks to Ukraine. He did not name them all, but those included Poland and Finland.

It was also reported that the Netherlands is ready to finance the transfer of tanks to Ukraine.

The issue of supporting Ukraine with Leopard tanks is on Norway’s agenda as well, but it is currently unknown whether a decision on that has been made.