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A shipment of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine has reportedly been setback ahead of an expected counteroffensive by Kyiv.
On Wednesday, Reuters reported that Spain's Defence Minister Margarita Robles told the state TV station, TVE, that the shipment containing six Leopard 2 tanks will not be sent to Ukraine until the second half of April. According to Reuters, Spain previously said that the shipment of tanks was expected to travel to Ukraine on April 9.
It is unclear exactly what has caused the delay in the shipment and Newsweek reached out to the Ministry of Defence in Spain for comment.
The remarks by Robles comes ahead of an expected counteroffensive by Ukraine, as they continue their war against Russia.
Last month, Denis Pushilin, the head of Russia's self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, was interviewed by Russia's Channel One and said, "I think that if they attempt to carry out a counteroffensive—and it's quite possible that they will be forced to do so—attacks will take place in several areas."
"The Zaporizhzhia frontline will definitely be one of them," Pushilin added.
U.S. Secretary of Deference Lloyd Austin previously said that nine Western countries had agreed to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. The U.S. previously pledged to send Abrams tanks to Ukraine. Germany also previously agreed to send Leopard II tanks to Ukraine.
"Germany will provide Ukraine with Leopard 2 combat tanks—as so far in close consultation with our international allies. Chancellor Scholz declared this in the Bundestag today. He also explicitly addressed those citizens who are worried about this decision," the German government said in a statement in January.
Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov recently spoke about the possible counteroffensive and told the Kyiv Post, "You will see Leopards in a counterattack by the decision of our General Staff. It is already planned in several directions."
Austin also previously spoke about a Ukrainian counteroffensive during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.
"The Ukrainians have inflicted significant losses on the Russians and depleted their armored vehicles in a way no one could have imagined. And now we see Russia decommissioning T-54 and T-55 tanks because of the level of losses that the Ukrainians inflicted upon them," Austin said, adding that Kyiv has a "very good chance" in their counteroffensive.
Austin noted that Ukraine still needs further assistance in air defense and said, "This is a critical need on the battlefield. They also need long-range weapons and armored vehicles."
Newsweek reached out to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry via email for comment.
About the writer
Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more