Western defense officials are continuing to put pressure on Germany to allow the export of its sophisticated Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine — but so far the country isn't budging in the latest talks.
German weapons companies manufacture the Leopard 2, and the German government legally has the final say over how and where the tanks are used, even when other countries are offering to export them.
Berlin is also hesitant to supply arms that would enable Kyiv to carry out attacks on Russian soil or that could potentially draw NATO into a broader conflict with Moscow. Scholz has asserted throughout the more than 10-month Russian invasion of Ukraine that Germany is already"Germany will not go it alone, Germany will act together with its allies and especially with our transatlantic partner, the U.S.
The Pentagon announced on Thursday its latest military aid package for Ukraine. The package, valued at $2.5 billion, includes 90 Stryker combat vehicles, 59 Bradley fighting vehicles and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition, but no tanks. This latest announcement brings total U.S. military assistance to Ukraine to $26.7 billion.
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