The cost of doing business | 73 comments (73 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

Politico.eu.com | Germany to send 88 Leopard I tanks to Ukraine, 3 Feb non-party status

...local media reported Friday [3 Feb].
The move further signals a reversal of Berlin's policy on tanks for Ukraine, nine days after the chancellery announced it would send one company of Leopard 2 tanks [=14 tanks; co x 4 = 1 tank battalion] to Kyiv as part of a European coalition.[...]

4-person crew per tank is a lot of "training"

The German government is also considering buying back 15 Gepard tanks it had sold to Qatar [!] -- but might also face some issues there, since ammunition for these is made in Switzerland, which has so far refused to approve re-exports to Ukraine on the grounds that it would breach its neutrality. However, some Swiss lawmakers are pushing for the country to reconsider its position....

6 Leopard 1 companies + 1 Leopard 2 company = 7 tank battalions, 408 total trainees

by Cat on Fri Feb 3rd, 2023 at 12:25:57 PM EST
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Re: doing business - UPDATE (none / 0)

archive.is | Germany Studies Tapping Coal-Exit Funds for Defense Projects, 3 Feb

Germany is considering re-routing existing subsidies for eliminating coal-fired power plants to help defense manufacturers build new production facilities, according to people familiar with the matter.
The discussions between Germany's federal government and regional states are aimed at providing the country's armed forces with more weapons and ammunition and creating jobs in regions that are affected by the shift away from coal, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the talks are confidential.
[...]

archive.ph | German govt security council OKs delivery of 178 Leopard 1 tanks to Ukraine - source, 7 Feb

The report emerged as German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius made a surprise appearance in Kyiv. Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov [?!] tweeted a picture of him and Pistorius posing with a scale model Leopard in a display case, writing: "The 'first' Leopard 2 has arrived in Kyiv."
Some would be sent in the summer but the bulk of the Leopard 1s would be delivered next year, Der Spiegel reported.
[...]
Earlier, the head of Leopard-maker Rheinmetall said it would send Ukraine 20-25 [?] Leopards this year, with another 88 to be sent next year.
[...]