The Czech authorities have applied for the purchase of German Leopard 2 tanks from Switzerland. This was announced by the head of the Federal Department of Defense, Population Protection and Sports of the Swiss Confederation Viola Amherd on Monday, March 6.
“Yes, we have a request from Germany, but meanwhile there is another request from the Czech Republic. We want to keep a certain reserve so that we can guarantee the security of our country. In addition, there will be a certain number of tanks that we do not need and that can be delivered if the parliament decides to write them off, ”she said on air. SRF.
According to information Ceske Noviny, Switzerland has 230 Leopard 2 tanks, of which 134 are in service and 96 have been decommissioned. However, they are not “disabled”. Under Swiss law, only decommissioned military equipment can be sold.
On March 3, department spokesman Lorenz Frischknecht said that Switzerland had received an application from Germany to purchase Leopard 2 tanks.
In turn, Fabian Eberhard, columnist for Blick, clarified that German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius together with Economics Minister Robert Habeck made a request to the Swiss side to sell Leopard 2 tanks to the German manufacturer Rheinmetall. According to him, Berlin wants to use these machines to “close the gaps in the EU and NATO.”
On February 28, Pistorius reported that the state of the Bundeswehr at the present time would not allow them to hold back the defense in the event of an attack by a potential enemy. According to the minister, the Bundeswehr is unable to protect either NATO allies or even its own citizens.
At the end of January, the German government confirmed the decision to send German Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. Germany is ready to form two tank battalions, at the first stage, Berlin will send a company of 14 tanks from the Bundeswehr stocks.
Western countries have stepped up military support for Kyiv against the backdrop of a special operation to protect Donbass. Moscow has repeatedly condemned the supply of arms to Ukraine. So, on January 29, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that the supply of tanks to Kyiv was an extremely destructive step. In the same month, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that Russia perceives the supply of Western tanks to Ukraine as the participation of NATO countries in the conflict against Russia.
