By KYIV. Dec 28 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Finland could supply Ukraine with its Leopard 2 tanks as military aid to boost Ukrainian combat capabilities, Finnish MPs from the Swedish People’s Party Anders Adlercreutz and the Green Party Atte Harjanne said in a statement, published on the website of the Capital Newspaper (Hufvudstadsbladet).
"Despite the strong support of Ukraine, some of the weapons are still excluded from assistance. Among other things, Western, modern tanks were not part of the equipment sent. Such tanks will significantly increase Ukraine’s combat capabilities on the battlefield. New equipment requires training, and therefore it would be especially valuable to provide Ukrainians with a large number of tanks of the same type, on the use of which Ukrainian troops could be effectively trained. The German-made Leopard 2 tank would be ideal for this purpose," the statement says.
The MPs note that thousands of such tanks have been built since the late 1970s, surpass Russian Soviet-era equipment in terms of performance and, apart from Finland, are used, in particular, in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Norway and Poland.
"Thanks to the joint efforts of the Europeans, we could make, perhaps, a decisive contribution to ensuring that Ukraine can maintain momentum in the war. There are about 200 Leopard 2 tanks in Finland in total. Geography limits our ability to transfer a large amount of critical equipment in use, but by signaling readiness to provide even a small number of tanks, we could start talking about tanks in Europe… By starting this discussion, we would be able to sow the seeds for wider and more effective support," the statement said.
At the same time, Adlercreutz and Harjanne emphasize that Finland’s own defense capability should not be compromised. "But it is clear that Ukraine’s success in the war is also critical to Finland’s security," they say.
The deputies also point out that the risk of the war escalation due to increased support for Ukraine should not be overestimated, since the nature of support will not be significantly changed with the supply of tanks. "We must also be careful not to analyze our support based on the Russian narrative, but instead make decisions based on how best to protect our own interests and our values," the statement concluded.
