Austria refuses to train Ukrainian soldiers on Leopard 2 tanks

Neutral Austria does not want to train Ukrainian troops on the Leopard 2 main battle tank, the country's Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner told Ö1 radio station, as cited by Kurier.

It was a "sovereign decision of each state to support Ukraine within the framework of its laws," said Tanner.

Meanwhile, German Armed Forces have already started such training, Tagesschau reported on Feb. 13, citing the German defense ministry's spokeswoman.

Austria has a single tank battalion consisting of 48 Leopard 2 main battle tanks based in Wels. Despite the Austrian neutrality, foreign soldiers are being trained on these tanks, particularly troops from NATO member states Hungary and the Czech Republic, according to Ö1.

On Jan. 30, Tanner and her Hungarian counterpart Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky said their countries had agreed not to send military assistance to Ukraine.

Germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Jan. 25 that his country would send 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine after months of delay and allow other countries to send their own stocks.

Poland promised to provide the 2A4 models. Canada is also providing four Leopard 2s. Other European countries, including the Netherlands, Denmark, and Norway, have talked about sending theirs but have yet to make a definitive commitment.

Editorial: Arming Ukraine won’t escalate war. Reluctance to do so will

The Kyiv Independent