Poland is ready to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine that Kyiv requested, Polish President Andrzej Duda announced on a visit to the western Ukrainian city of Lviv.
Warsaw is willing to deliver the tanks “within the framework of an international coalition,” Duda said after meeting his Ukrainian and Lithuanian counterparts.
“As you know, there are a number of formal conditions that have to be met… but most of all, we want this to be an international coalition,” Duda said, adding that he is counting on other countries to contribute to deliveries.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky applauded the move but said he expected “a common decision” involving other countries willing to send the advanced Leopard battle tanks.
“One state alone cannot help us,” he said.
“I think today there will be a positive (decision) from another state to supply us with modern Western-style tanks,” Zelensky added without naming the country.
At the same press conference, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda announced that his country would send anti-aircraft systems and ammunition to Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Germany’s refusal to send his country battle tanks was costing lives.
The “longer it takes to make the decision, the more people will die,” he said during a visit of his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, to Kharkiv.
Prezydent @AndrzejDuda w #Lwów: Kompania czołgów Leopard dla Ukrainy zostanie przekazana w ramach budowania koalicji międzynarodowej. Taka decyzja jest już w Polsce.
— Kancelaria Prezydenta (@prezydentpl) January 11, 2023
