Portugal did not specify how many Leopard-2 tanks the country would send to Ukraine
Photo: REUTERS
Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa, who is visiting the Central African Republic, confirmed that his government will send Leopard-2 tanks, which are in service with the Portuguese army, to Ukraine. However, he did not specify the number of tanks. And he said: “I know how many tanks will be sent, but this will be announced at the right time.”
For such an intrigue, Costa, apparently, is trying to hide a bad game: the Portuguese media, having learned about the planned transfer, found out that as of last month, 37 Leopards-2 were in the hangars of the army of Portugal, but almost they are all faulty. These data were later confirmed by the commander of the Portuguese armed forces, Admiral António Silva Ribeiro.
Indirectly, Costa confirmed this fact by stating that Lisbon was negotiating with the Allies to acquire the parts necessary to repair the Leopard 2 that had failed.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said earlier this week that Kyiv would receive 120 to 140 tanks of various models from 12 Western countries. But neither he nor the “suppliers” explained how the Ukrainian Armed Forces would receive shells for the same Leopards. The cheapest shell for a modern tank now costs about 10 thousand euros. And even if each tank received by Ukraine will fire 1 shot per day, just this cannonball will cost Kyiv (or its patrons) about 1.5 million euros per day or more than 40 million euros per month.
