Spain 'willing' to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine: Defense minister

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles said on Wednesday that Spain is willing to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine.

In a statement to the EFE news agency, she said Spanish officials would discuss with allies to determine how many tanks Ukraine needs and how many Spain can send.

Spain has one of the largest fleets of Leopard tanks — a total of 347. Most of them are the model Leopard 2E, made in Spain, but it also has more than 100 Leopard 2 A4 that were purchased from Germany in 1995.

However, some of those tanks became inoperative after a flood on a military base in Zaragoza.

In August, Spain canceled its plans to send the tanks to Ukraine because the defense minister said the armored vehicles were in “an absolutely lamentable state” and would “pose a risk” to their users.

“The vast majority of the Leopards that Spain could send to Ukraine would need a tune-up; others couldn’t be delivered,” Robles told EFE.

However, at that time, Spain may have been waiting for other allies to make the first move. When the news emerged that Spain wanted to send the tanks last summer, German authorities said Spain did not have permission.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz has now announced that Germany would send 14 tanks to Ukraine.

“Spain is just where it needs to be — with Germany, France, Italy and Portugal. Our position is to stick with our partners and allies to help Ukraine,” said Spanish presidency minister Felix Bolanos on Wednesday.

“We will remain united, and we’ll be coordinating with the rest of our allies, especially Europe,” said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez Tuesday evening.

The decision to send the tanks will not pass through Spain’s parliament, despite requests to vote on the matter.

Ione Belarra, a minister and leader of the government’s junior coalition partner Unidas Podemos, says Spain should not send the tanks. She said it would only “escalate” the conflict and that Russia’s reaction could be “dangerous and unpredictable.”

The separatist parties ERC and Bildu have also expressed their disagreement with the move.