Pentagon Announces Ukrainian Promise of 150+ Leopard Tanks

Washington, March 15 – Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said that nine Western countries have pledged to transfer more than 150 German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine.

On Wednesday, he holds a regular meeting with representatives of countries donating military aid to Ukraine.

“The coalition of countries donating Leopard tanks to Ukraine continues to grow. Nine countries have already committed to donating more than 150 Leopard tanks,” Austin said. He did not mention the promise of the United States itself to transfer its Abrams tanks to Ukraine. According to Austin, Western aid is helping Ukraine field “more than nine brigades of tanks and other armored vehicles”. He also noted the importance of supplying modern air defense systems, including the Patriot, which the United States, Germany and the Netherlands pledged to transfer to the Ukrainians.

“We must provide Ukraine with all capabilities for the upcoming battles, including spare parts and maintenance packages to maintain the combat capability of the vital assets allocated by members of the Contact Group,” Austin said in the open part of the meeting.

Russia has previously sent a memorandum to NATO countries over the supply of weapons to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has indicated that any shipment containing weapons to Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that NATO countries were “playing with fire” by supplying arms to Ukraine. The press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Peskov, noted that the injection of weapons into Ukraine from the West does not contribute to the success of the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative impact. Lavrov stated that the United States and NATO are directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine, “including not only the supply of weapons, but also the training of personnel … on the territory of Great Britain, Germany, Italy and other countries.”