[ad_1]
Canada is considering donating four Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, a senior source told CBC News – but no decision has been made.
The government may announce the donation of tanks from Thursday, the sources said.
CBC News did not identify the confidential source because it was not authorized to speak publicly.
One of the sources said that Canada will send Ukraine a variant of the A4 tank – the oldest in Canada’s military inventory. Canada bought the A4 from the Netherlands during the Afghan war.
The Globe and Mail first reported the number of tanks Canada could send to the Ukraine war effort.
WATCH | Canada can probably supply 50 tanks to Ukraine: retired general
“A lot of tanks are in bad shape, but we can make sure they’re operational, ready for the Ukrainians,” retired Canadian general Rick Hillier told Power & Politics on Wednesday. “It’s definitely going to take some work, but I want to see it happen.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government would provide more support to Ukraine but refused to join allies in announcing the donation of German-made tanks to fight Russian forces.
One military expert said Germany’s announcement that it was sending Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine put pressure on Trudeau to follow through.
“We will continue to be there to provide whatever support we can to Ukraine,” Trudeau said. “I will not make an announcement today, but I can tell you that we are looking at what we can do to support Ukraine.”
Trudeau made the comments in Hamilton, Ontario, where he was attending a cabinet retreat before returning to Parliament.
For weeks, Ukraine has been asking its allies to supply up to 300 German-made Leopard 2 battle tanks. Some of the allies had these tanks in their inventory, but could not donate them unless Germany agreed to transfer the vehicles to a third party.
Earlier on Wednesday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced that his country would supply Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2 tanks from its own military.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Germany advised several allies of the plan ahead of the announcement, including Canada.
“Germany will always be at the forefront when it comes to supporting Ukraine,” Scholz said later in a speech to lawmakers in Germany’s federal parliament.
Allies step up
Germany made the announcement on the same day US President Joe Biden told reporters in Washington that the United States would send 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine.
Germany, reluctant to incur Russia’s wrath just by sending tanks, said it would not send Leopards unless the US put the Abrams on the table.
Britain announced last week that it will send 14 Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine.
Reuters reported on Wednesday that Norway’s defense minister announced his country would also donate Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, joining Poland, Finland, Spain and the Netherlands.
Walter Dorn, professor of defense studies at the Royal Military College, said the donations announced by other countries increased pressure on Canada to do the same.
“I think there will be pressure from the United States for Canada to pony up the Leopard-2 tank, because the Leopard-2 will be the mainstay of the Ukrainian tank force,” he said.
Dorn said the Abrams tank is very different from the Leopard-2 tank and allies likely want Ukraine to have a more uniform fleet of vehicles to ensure they can be supported with parts and repairs on the battlefield.
Maintenance challenges
Dorn said the German announcement was important because it allowed Ukraine to counter Russian advances into Ukraine and launch an attack of its own.
“This has the potential to be a game-changer because it adds more punch to the Ukrainian forces,” Dorn told CBC News. “He was a whole generation better.
“Western weapons are heavier, have better armor, can pack more punch, have the capacity to take territory more easily. [Russian] The T-72 couldn’t stand a chance against these more modern weapons.
Dorn said that while Ukraine is asking for 300 tanks, having just 100 of those vehicles will make a difference on the battlefield.
The Germans said the tanks would not be ready for battle for months.
Dorn said it will take time to train crews and build the maintenance facilities needed to keep the tanks operational.
The Canadian Armed Forces have 112 Leopard 2s in their inventory. These include 82 designed for combat and 30 used for engineering purposes and recovering disabled vehicles. Many are not combat ready due to maintenance issues.
According to a paper published last year by the Royal Military College, “the poor service level of the Leopard 2 main battle tank is an endemic problem and a strategic level concern since its implementation.”
The newspaper blamed the maintenance problem on lack of infrastructure, technicians and spare parts.
The force would not say how many tanks are ready for battle
Retired lieutenant general and former commander of the Canadian Army Jean-Marc Lanthier said in an interview with the Canadian Press that any donation must balance the needs of Ukraine against the potential impact on the Canadian military.
“Getting rid of any tank — because we have some, and some are actively working — will have a direct impact on the Army’s level of readiness,” said Lanthier, who is an armored officer.
“What should stop us from sending tanks? I think we have a moral responsibility in terms of the immediacy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. They are fighting a war. We are not.”
Canada bought Leopards from Germany during the war in Afghanistan. They are notionally divided into squadrons of 19 tanks each, with two squadrons in Edmonton and the third at CFB Gagetown, NB Most of the rest are at the armor training school in Gagetown.
WATCH | Tanks significantly improve Ukraine’s defense capabilities: German ambassador
The U.S. and Germany both announced Wednesday they will supply Ukraine with main battle tanks. German Ambassador to Canada Sabine Sparwasser joins Power & Politics to discuss how Germany came to this decision.
“And normally you keep a bunch of people in a depot ready to deploy, but that’s not something you should do because you don’t have the numbers,” Lanthier said.
Department of National Defense spokesman Andrew McKelvey would not comment Wednesday on what percentage of the military’s Leopard 2s are currently combat-ready, and how many are out of service for maintenance or other reasons.
“Tank maintenance is similar to aircraft maintenance, and the status of the fleet at any time depends on the complete maintenance, repair and overhaul schedule, which is connected to certain requirements for training or operational employment,” he said.
“For operational security reasons, we cannot determine the number of Leopard 2s maintained at any given time or give an indication of the maintenance schedule.”
The question facing the government is whether the benefits of sending tanks to Ukraine outweigh the military impact, Lanthier said. If so, another question is whether the tank will be replaced – and if so, how soon.
[ad_2]
Source link