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Tag: Zelensky

Germany to deliver Leopard 2 tanks to Kiev

According to Der Spiegel, Olaf Scholz will give the green light to this delivery, as requested by Kiev.

Germany is to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks, as requested by Kiev, two German media reported on Tuesday evening. For its part, the United States may agree to supply Abrams tanks, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected to give the go-ahead, probably on Wednesday, for the dispatch of German Leopard 2 type 2A6 tanks, according to Le Spiegel on its website, without citing a source. The media outlet adds that this involves "at least one company", i.e. at least ten heavy tanks. The NTV news channel, quoting sources close to the government, also reports that the German Chancellor, who has been under pressure for several weeks to give his agreement, is preparing to announce it.

World-renowned weapon

When questioned by AFP, the Social Democrat Chancellor's entourage declined to comment on Tuesday evening. The German leader, who is due to address the Bundestag, the lower house of the German parliament, at 12:00 GMT on Wednesday, would also give his agreement to countries, including Poland, that wish to deliver Leopard 2 tanks to Kiev, according to these media.

The Leopard 2 heavy tank, which Ukraine has been demanding for months from Germany and the West, is a world-renowned weapon with the potential to have a "significant" impact on the battlefield, according to experts. Designed by German manufacturer Krauss-Maffei and mass-produced from the late 1970s onwards to replace the American M48 Patton tank and then the Leopard 1 tank, the Leopard 2 combines firepower, mobility and protection.

Finland and Poland ready to do it

In Berlin, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said on Wednesday morning that he had "expressly encouraged partner countries that have Leopard tanks ready for deployment to train Ukrainian forces on these tanks".

So far, Finland and Poland have said they are ready to do so. Warsaw, which wants to create a "coalition of countries supporting Ukraine with Leopard 2″ tanks, has officially sent a request to this effect, the receipt of which was confirmed by Berlin on Tuesday.

"We will deal with the request as a matter of urgency in accordance with the procedure laid down", a German government spokesman said on Tuesday.

20min.ch

Emmanuel Macron is unlikely to visit Kiev before the second round

Volodymyr Zelensky has invited Emmanuel Macron to visit Ukraine. It won't be for a while yet," moderates Clément Beaune.

UKRAINE - Will Emmanuel Macron travel to Ukraine like British Prime Minister Boris Johnson or European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen? "Not in the next few days", replied Clément Beaune on Sud Radio on Monday 18 April.

Although the Head of State has had numerous telephone conversations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, he has not visited Ukraine, unlike some of his European counterparts. But for the Secretary of State for European Affairs, a visit before the second round of the presidential election on Sunday 24 April "would no doubt be misinterpreted". 

But Emmanuel Macron is expected to be there. In an interview broadcast on Sunday by CNN, Volodymyr Zelensky said that he had invited his French counterpart to meet him in Ukraine. This invitation follows Emmanuel Macron's reluctance to describe what has been happening in the country since the Russian invasion on 24 February as "genocide".

Emmanuel Macron in Ukraine "if it's useful".

"I told him that I wanted him to understand that this is not a war, that this is nothing other than genocide. I invited him to come when he had the chance," said Volodymyr Zelensky. "He will come, and he will see, and I am sure he will understand."

For his part, Clément Beaune stated that "the President of the Republic, as President of the Republic, has always been very clear: he may go, if it is useful (...) We cannot make a visit that is merely symbolic, it must be a visit that has an impact". In the meantime," says Clément Beaune, "our support is very, very clear, and involves military and humanitarian aid.

Speaking to CNN, the Ukrainian president also said that he would like US President Joe Biden to come to Ukraine, after his surprise claim that Russian forces were committing "genocide". "The decision is his, of course, it depends on the security situation. But I think he is the leader of the United States and for that he should come and see."

Text by Le HuffPost

 

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