The Ministry of Defense intends to send tanks to Ukraine. After days waiting for Germany to decide to take the step –which according to experts means going up a step in the war escalation–, the Government announced that it is now willing to send Leopard tanks to the territory invaded by Russia, as well as to train Ukrainian military in its use. But first, these battleships that were acquired from Germany in the late 90s must be subjected to “tuning up”.
Defense Minister Margarita Robles remarked yesterday that the Spanish contribution will form part of a donation coordinated by various NATO countries. This afternoon a videoconference convened by Germany is scheduled to finalize the details. In this meeting, the two main unknowns will be resolved: how many tanks will be made available to the Ukrainian army and which model will be chosen.
Spain has 357 Leopard tanks of two different types. The original German Leopard 2 A4 and the later Spanish adaptation, the Leopard 2E. There are 108 units of the oldest: half of the carts are deployed in Ceuta and Melilla and the other half have been parked in the Casetas (Zaragoza) logistics center for more than a decade.
It was precisely this base that Robles visited last summer after a first Spanish attempt to send tanks to Ukraine. There he said he verified that the cars were in an “absolutely lamentable” state. At least, that is the excuse made by the Minister of Defense at that time, in which Germany –which was not in favor of the work– had to authorize the donation to third countries as a manufacturer.
Now, “a set-up” says Defense that would be enough to turn twenty of the stored tanks into useful ones. The Army is studying which of these tanks can be put back on track – with considerable investment and time – and which could be used in the war as recovery vehicles, used to get damaged or stuck tanks out of a quagmire.
There are another fifty Leopard 2 A4s in the autonomous cities: divided equally. This would be the second option that would be on the table: it would not entail an extra outlay. since they are operational and their delivery would be faster. This possibility is not well seen by the right. Yesterday from the Foundation for Analysis and Social Studies (FAES), chaired by José María Aznar, already sent a clear message: mobilizing these tanks “would leave without coverage” the Spanish cities bordering Morocco.
The third option, which military sources describe as “nothing to be ruled out”, would involve providing some of the 229 Leopard 2E, the model that began to be built in Spain in the early 2000s after acquiring the German patent. It is one of the most modern on the continent: greater autonomy, armor and range. As well as in Córdoba, Madrid and Badajoz, the Army has deployed six of these modern armored vehicles on an international NATO mission in Latvia together with 600 soldiers.
And while waiting for the shipment to be completed, there is already a glimpse of a political anger within the coalition government. Yesterday, the leader of United We Can, Ione Belarra, did not support the proposal that the socialist wing of the Executive verbalized because “it could have a very dangerous response from Russia.” This position was supported by regular partners in Congress such as ERC or EH Bildu, from where they consider that such a decision should be debated in Congress.
