NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday from Germany that he expects a «solution soon» to the consultations initiated by Berlin with other allies to coordinate the possible delivery of Leopard tanks to Ukraine, insisting that the supply of these military systems is urgently needed to stop an upcoming Russian offensive on the ground.
«At this key moment we must provide heavy weaponry to Ukraine. We have discussed the issue of supplying tanks, consultations between allies will continue and I hope that we will have a solution soon,» he assured at a press conference in the German capital together with the Minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius.
The visit of NATO’s political chief comes days after Germany maintained the blockade on the supply of battle tanks last Friday at the meeting of more than 40 allies at the Ramstein air base. Against Pistorius, the former Norwegian prime minister has defended joint consultations and assessments among allies, insisting there must be «conclusions soon.» «There will be new decisions as we move forward as an alliance,» he said.
Stoltenberg has stressed that time is pressing as Ukraine needs such equipment to cope with new offensives prepared by the Kremlin in the spring. «Tanks are important to repel Russian offensives and for Ukraine to retake its territory,» he said.
In any case, he emphasized that NATO countries that have these tanks are already in the process of identifying equipment, preparing it to be sent to Kiev and starting the training of Ukrainian troops, stressing that the allies are preparing to take this step, which, in any case, he warned that it will take some time.
Faced with international pressure on Berlin to allow the re-export of German-made tanks to Ukraine, as demanded by Poland and the Baltic states, which on Monday suggested the creation of an international platform to send the tanks, the allied secretary general insisted that Germany plays a «key role» within NATO and valued as «historic» Berlin’s announcements in the field of defense since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.
Likewise, Stoltenberg has highlighted its commitment to sending armaments such as Patriot batteries, anti-aircraft defense equipment, as well as artillery and ammunition. «German weapons are saving lives in Ukraine every day and preventing Russian missile attacks on schools and hospitals,» he said.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
