The First Leopard 2 tanks from Poland have been delivered to Ukraine, Minister of National Defence of Poland Mariusz Błaszczak said during a National Security Council meeting.
“As of today, Polish Leopard tanks are already in Ukraine,” he said, as quoted by Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti.
Polish President Andrzej Duda noted that Poland became the first country to supply Ukraine with modern tanks, adding that he was happy about the fact.
UPDATE 4:03 PM
The first shipment of Leopard 2 tanks consists of four tanks, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has announced.
The delivery of the tanks to the territory of Ukraine has also been confirmed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Bloomberg reported earlier, citing a Polish official, that Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki would announce the delivery of the first 14 Leopard tanks promised to Ukraine today.
The US Secretary of Defence previously stated that eight countries would provide Ukraine with battle tanks — Germany, Poland, Canada, Portugal, Spain, Norway, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
First Leopard tanks from Poland were supposed to be delivered to Ukraine in March, as per a past tweet of the Polish Defence Ministry.