Ukraine is to receive 120-140 modern Western tanks in the first wave of aid from the allies, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said at a briefing.
According to him, the tank coalition currently has 12 members. However, it is still too early to name all the coalition countries and their practical contributions, as some have yet to announce formal decisions.
"I can only mention that in the first wave of contributions, the Armed Forces of Ukraine will receive 120 to 140 units of modern Western tanks. These are Leopard 2, Challenger 2, M1 Abrams. And we are counting on Leclerc," Kuleba said.
He added that Ukraine continues to work both on expanding the tank coalition and on increasing the contributions of the already announced participants.
"The Armed Forces of Ukraine must receive all the types of weapons they need to defend and restore the territorial integrity of our country. The public in Ukraine and our partners are aware of the types of weapons we need. First and foremost, we are talking about jet fighters and long-range missiles that can hit targets up to 300 kilometres. This is not a weapon of escalation, it is a weapon of defence against the aggressor," the minister explained.
He expressed confidence that the Armed Forces would receive all the necessary weapons.
Earlier, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valeriy Zaluzhnyy, said that Ukraine would be able to reach the frontlines on 23 February if it had 300 tanks, about 700 infantry fighting vehicles and half a thousand howitzers.