Poland will seek permission from Berlin to export German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Monday.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has resisted international pressure to allow the tanks to be sent to Ukraine.
Germany’s Green Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told a French television program on Sunday that Berlin “will not stand in the way” if Poland sends Leopard tanks to Ukraine. He added that Warsaw had not yet sought German permission to do so.
“We will ask for that permission,” Morawiecki told reporters, in comments broadcast by local news channels. “But even if we do not receive this consent, we will still give up our tanks together with others as part of a small coalition.”
Morawiecki gave no details on when a formal request might be made. Germany’s original supply contract to Poland gave Berlin control over the re-export of the tanks.
The Polish prime minister’s comments came as EU foreign ministers met in Brussels on Monday for talks that will include the delivery of tanks to ..
Kyiv says tanks are a priority in its defense against Russian forces in Ukraine.
“From my personal opinion, the weapons should be given to the Ukrainian army,” said Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief. “But this is the decision of the member states and we are here to discuss it.”