Germany says it will send 14 Leopard tanks to Ukraine to start
CBC
After weeks of hesitation that saw growing impatience among Germany's allies, Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced Wednesday that his government would provide Ukraine with Leopard 2 battle tanks and approve requests by other countries to do the same.
In a statement, the German government said it would initially provide Ukraine with one company of Leopard 2 A6 tanks, which comprises 14 vehicles, from its own stocks. The goal is for Germany and its allies to provide Ukraine with a total of two battalions, or 88 tanks.
"This decision follows our well-known line of supporting Ukraine to the best of our ability," Scholz said after a cabinet meeting in Berlin.
Germany was "acting in close co-ordination" with its international allies, he said.
WATCH | Ukraine controls about 30% of Zaporizhzhia region ahead of potential escalation:
Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said that Germany had advised several allies of its plan ahead of the announcement, including Canada.
"Germany will always be at the forefront when it comes to supporting Ukraine," Scholz said later in an address to lawmakers in the Bundestag.
The long-awaited decision came after U.S. officials said a preliminary agreement had been struck for the United States to send M1 Abrams tanks to help Kyiv push back Russian forces entrenched in the east almost a year since the start of the war.
Reaction from Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy:
By getting Washington to commit some of its own tanks Berlin hopes to spread the risk of any backlash from Russia.
Ekkehard Brose, head of the German military's Federal Academy for Security Policy, said tying the United States into the decision was crucial, to avoid Europe facing a nuclear-armed Russia alone.
But he also noted the deeper historic significance of the decision.
"German-made tanks will face off against Russian tanks in Ukraine once more," he said, noting that this was "not an easy thought" for Germany, which takes its responsibility for the horrors of the Second World War seriously.
Members of Scholz's three-party coalition government welcomed the news ahead of the official announcement.
The United States is preparing to intercept more ships transporting Venezuelan oil following the seizure of a tanker this week, as it increases pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, six sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
The U.S. has seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday, a move that sent oil prices higher and sharply escalated tensions between Washington and Caracas.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s new national security strategy appears to blow up some of the key principles behind 80 years of European collective defence, challenging the foundation of the continent’s relationship with the country.
The U.S. military flew a pair of fighter jets over the Gulf of Venezuela on Tuesday in what appears to be the closest American warplanes have come to the South American country's airspace since the start of the Trump administration's pressure campaign.
The federal government says it is keeping a close eye on lethal strikes by American forces on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean, while continuing with operations in the region.
Jared Kushner's financing role in Paramount's $108 billion US bid for Warner Bros. Discovery injects Trump-family interests into one of the biggest media battles in years, raising concerns over whether the president's influence could tip the scales.
Some Syrians are going home a year after the fall of Assad. Others are cautious about a one-way trip
At the Öncüpınar border crossing in southern Turkey, tables, chairs and sofas are piled high on the back of trucks lined up behind a gate. On the back of one sits a precariously strapped washing machine.
U.S. President Donald Trump spoke highly of Canada on Sunday. But when asked if he would restart trade talks with his northern neighbour, he replied with a vague, "We'll see."
For months, U.S. pressure on Venezuela has included a buildup of military force in the region, threats of military action, along with strikes on alleged drug boats off its coast.
Darrell Nasogaluak can look at a kayak and know it’s from his region in the western Arctic.
The U.S. military said it had conducted another strike against a small boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Thursday, following a pause of almost three weeks.
WARNING: This story contains images of dead bodies and graphic physical injuries.
Health insurance could be about to get a lot more expensive for millions of Americans, and that's posing a political challenge for U.S. President Donald Trump.