French and German leaders held a summit in France Sunday as pressure mounts on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to approve a shipment of Leopard 2 heavy tanks to Ukraine.
The chancellor did not say whether Germany would agree to provide Ukraine with a delivery of battle tanks, but the Reuters news agency cited him as saying such decisions would be made in coordination with allies including the United States.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he does not rule out the possibility of sending Leclerc tanks to Ukraine. He cautioned, however, that sending tanks must not endanger France's security or escalate the war between Ukraine and Russia.
British Foreign Minister James Cleverly said Sunday in an interview with Sky News he would like to see the Ukrainians “equipped with things like the Leopard 2.” U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, the newly installed Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told ABC's "This Week" that the United States should offer its heavy Abrams battle tanks to Ukraine to encourage Germany to send its Leopard 2s as well.
"Just one Abrams tank would be enough to prompt allies, notably Germany, to unlock their own tank inventories for the fight against Russia,” he said.
Democratic Senator Chris Coons also told ABC that it was time to set aside U.S. concerns about delivering the Abrams.
"I respect that our military leaders think the Abrams is too sophisticated, too expensive a platform to be as useful as the Leopards, but we need to continue to work with our close allies and move forward in lock step."
Latest Developments in Ukraine: Jan. 22
Their comments Sunday echoed reactions of European officials Saturday against Germany’s indecision about sending its heavy tanks to Ukraine. Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics called on Berlin to “provide Leopard tanks to Ukraine now.”
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas called for “many more” weapons to be sent to Ukraine and faster. Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau urged “action now.”
"Ukrainian blood is shed for real,” he wrote on Twitter. “This is the price of hesitation over Leopard deliveries,” he said.
Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Saturday expressed frustration with the slow pace of the military support the country’s allies are providing. "Every day of delay is the death of Ukrainians. Think faster."
Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops will start training to use Leopard 2 battle tanks on Polish soil, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told VOA’s Ukrainian Service Friday. Reznikov described the development as a breakthrough.
"I am optimistic regarding this because the first step has been made. We will start training programs for our tank crews on Leopard 2s,” Reznikov said.
Russian warnings
In contrast, Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament and an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, issued a dire warning on the Telegram messaging app.
"Deliveries of offensive weapons to the Kyiv regime will lead to a global catastrophe," he said. "If Washington and NATO countries supply weapons that will be used to strike civilian cities and attempt to seize our territories, as they threaten, this will lead to retaliatory measures using more powerful weapons.
"Arguments that the nuclear powers have not previously used weapons of mass destruction in local conflicts are untenable,” Volodin added. “Because these states did not face a situation where there was a threat to the security of their citizens and the territorial integrity of the country."`