A handout photo from the Polish Defence Ministry shows a Leopard 2A4 tank at the military range in Zagan, Poland on January 26, 2013.
Germany’s defence minister acknowledged Friday that countries like Canada — and to a lesser extent Ukraine — are in a tough spot when it comes to maintaining older variants of the Leopard 2 main battle tank and keeping them in the field. Germany's defence minister acknowledged Friday that countries like Canada — and to a lesser extent Ukraine — are in a tough spot when it comes to maintaining older variants of the Leopard 2 main battle tank and keeping them in the field.
Media reports in Germany and elsewhere in Europe last winter said that many of the Leopards donated to Ukraine — of which 67 were A4 variants — were out of commission, either due to battle damage or a shortage of spares. "We can easily provide more spare parts for the Leopard tank 2A6, for example, but for 2A4 there is no production line," Pistorious said during a media availability at Department of National Defence headquarters.
After a lot of hesitation, Germany delivered 18 Leopard 2 A6s to Ukraine a year ago in March as part of its military assistance package. Critics have pointed the finger at the German manufacturers Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall and said their refusal to share the intellectual property rights for the various components of the Leopard A4s with other companies has caused the parts shortage and driven up the cost of repairs.
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