Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Monday his country would seek Berlin’s approval to supply German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine.
“We will ask for such an agreement, but that is a secondary issue,” Morawiecki told reporters.
“Even if we don’t get their approval, we will hand over our tanks to Ukraine as part of a small coalition, even without Germany,” he added.
Poland, which has agreed to ship 14 Leopards to Kyiv, says it is in talks with about fifteen countries on the subject.
Germany is under increased pressure to supply its Leopard tanks to Ukraine, which has been urging them after diplomatic chief Annalena Baerbock said her country was willing to do so, despite reluctance from Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The Polish Prime Minister estimated that Germany had a total of “more than 350 Leopards in use” and around 200 more “in stock”.
According to Annalena Baerbock, Germany is ready to allow Warsaw to supply the tanks at its disposal. “If we were asked the question, we would not resist it,” said the Environment Minister, who governs in a coalition with the Social Democrats Olaf Scholz and the Liberals, on Sunday.
“At the moment the question has not been asked” by Poland, which was asked to make an official request to Berlin, said the minister, who was interviewed in Paris on French broadcaster LCI.
However, the final decision rests with the Federal Chancellor, who has so far not wanted to comment on the question of these indirect deliveries or the direct delivery of leopards from German stocks.