As Welt writes, the government of Germany received the Rheinmetall company's application to transfer 88 Leopard tanks to Ukraine.
The company is ready to provide them to the Ukrainian Armed Forces in several weeks but there is one problem – the export approval by Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Welt refers to the documents received from the manufacturing company, according to which the federal government is asked to permit the export of 88 Leopard Type 1А5 tanks. In addition to this request, there are two more – one, concerning 100 Marder armored personnel carriers, from the same manufacturer and another – from the KMW Concern to supply 100 self-propelled howitzerі.
The request concerning Leopards came to Germany's Ministry of Economy last week.
"For confidentiality reasons, we don't usually comment on any unfinished cases. In general, we act swiftly and constructively when it's about Ukraine, as soon as concrete requests are received we initiate all the necessary steps and, if necessary, we get approval for them from the relevant committees that are responsible for decisions," – the Ministry of Economy told the journalists.
That means the Federal Security Council, the chairman of which is Chancellor Scholz. It includes all the ministries that have anything to do with the weapons export. De facto it's Scholz who has the final say, and he hasn't given his approval for the direct supplies of heavy weapons to Ukrainians yet.
Bild has reported that Rheinmetall suggested that the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Germany immediately hand over to Ukraine the combat-ready Marders and afterward receive completed equipment from the manufacturer. Germany's Defense Ministry objected. At the same time, the government body didn't assess the state of the armored personnel carriers and their need for inspection and maintenance. Germany insists that instead of the Marders Ukraine should receive old Soviet weapons.
According to the Bild's data, Germany's Defense Ministry on the chancellery demand excluded all the heavy weaponry from the request list that Ukraine provided despite the German industry being ready to provide it in the short or mid-term. Out of 15 Ukraine's initial requests for weapons, only three remained, and for some of them, there are alternatives.
Chancellor Scholz explained his decision saying that there still was a threat for the NATO states so the Baltics region countries were getting additional arms.
According to SonntagZeitung, Switzerland has held back the German weapon supply to Ukraine. It blocked the re-export of the Swiss-made ammunition that is used in the Marder armored vehicles, which Kyiv would like to receive, because of its neutrality law. Under it, Switzerland can't supply weapons to war zones.