The Dutch government is planning to buy several dozen new Leopard 1 tanks for the Ukrainian military, a source from the Dutch parliament told Dutch broadcasting service NOS.
According to the unnamed source, the tanks could potentially be bought from Switzerland, but the Swiss government has not yet confirmed whether they are willing to allow the sale.
Swiss officials have consistently underlined their commitment to neutrality since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, saying that the transfer of Swiss-made weapons to an active war zone would jeopardize its stance.
The Swiss government, however, on May 24 supported the decommissioning of 25 advanced Leopard 2 battle tanks to allow for their sale to Germany, in a move that could permit Germany to provide more tanks to Ukraine.
Denmark and the Netherlands on April 20 said they would supply Ukraine with 14 Leopard 2 tanks, the successor to the Leopard 1, by 'early 2024.' Denmark said it planned to supply Ukraine with Leopard 1 tanks as soon as this summer.
The 14 tanks donated by Denmark and the Netherlands would cost an estimated 165 million euros, NOS said. The cost of the Leopard 1 tanks was not reported.
The Netherlands also recently highlighted its commitment to training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets, pushing for the United States to approve the transfer of the jets to Ukraine.
Illia Ponomarenko
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