Netherlands and Denmark sign contract with Rheinmetall for 14 Leopard 2A4 tanks
The Dutch and Danish governments have officially signed a contract with arms manufacturer Rheinmetall to implement the intentions announced in April to supply Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine as part of the Tank Coalition initiative.
This is reported on the official website of Rheinmetall.
The order was approved by officials from the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany, as well as representatives of the company, and is worth "millions of euros".
"We're talking about 14 overhauled used Leopard 2A4 tanks, not new vehicles," CNN reported on 27 June, citing Rheinmetall spokesman Oliver Hoffmann.
"The first vehicle is scheduled for delivery in January 2024, and the last one by the end of the year. The vehicles are upgraded Leopard 2A4 tanks purchased by Rheinmetall from the arsenals of the user countries," the company said in a statement.
Rheinmetall plays a significant role in the proper preparation and transfer of various military equipment and ammunition to Ukraine. In March of this year, the company has already delivered 20 Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Kyiv on behalf of the German government.
The next batch of 20 combat vehicles was announced by the German government earlier this month and will be delivered to the Ukrainian frontline this summer. The aid package also stated that the Rheinmetall Group is also planning to transfer to Ukraine the first batch of ammunition for the Cheetah self-propelled gun in the amount of 10,000 rounds. In total, the company has a contract to supply 300,000 rounds of this type of ammunition.
In addition, by the end of 2023, the company plans to supply Ukraine with 26 state-of-the-art military trucks, two "state-of-the-art" air defence systems and SurveilSPIRE mobile reconnaissance systems equipped with night and day vision cameras.
Rheinmetall is also providing the Ukrainian military with a field hospital and a mobile surgical station for first aid, which will be extremely important for the Ukrainian army.
The Tank Coalition was formed this winter and currently consists of 12 Western countries. On 24 February 2023, on the anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Poland announced the delivery of the first Leopard tanks to Ukrainian defenders.
Among the Western countries that have joined forces to provide tanks to Kyiv is the United States, which has promised to deliver 31 Abrams to Ukraine. Last month, Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder confirmed that the tanks had been delivered to German training grounds to train the Ukrainian military.