The announcement came during a summit of Western nations hosted by U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in southwest Germany. Austin had appealed to America's closest military allies to 'keep moving heaven and earth' to help Ukraine defend itself.
— After weeks resisting calls from Ukraine, the U.S. and from within his own country to send heavy weapons to help Ukrainian forces repel Russia's invasion, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has agreed to supply some serious armament. The government announced Tuesday that Germany would deliver 50 Flakpanzer Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns to Ukraine. hosted by U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the U.S.'s Ramstein Air Base in southwest Germany.
The German government has now granted permission to arms manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann to provide the anti-aircraft tanks to Ukraine. The weapons are built on German Leopard I tank hulls and mounted with twin autocannon. Each"Cheetah," as the tanks are commonly known, boasts 320 anti-aircraft rounds. The 50 for Ukraine will be drawn from former stocks of the Bundeswehr, Germany's military.
The Gepard tanks, often called"Cheetahs," can operate autonomously in all weather conditions, day or night. The current version could be used to shoot down modern fighter aircraft, standard missiles, remotely guided missiles and drones, the manufacturer says. It wasn't clear how likely the German government is to grant those requests, but if it does okay the provision of battle tanks, it would be the heaviest offensive weaponry provided to Ukraine to date.
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