BERGEN TRAINING RANGE, Germany (Reuters) – German-made Leopard 2 main battle tanks piloted by Ukrainian army soldiers are used during EU military training for Ukraine in Bergen, northern Germany, repeating exercises to fire targets. They are expected to return to the front line with Leopard 2 in a few days, and they are expected to be the trump card to break the war.
On top of a hill overlooking the entire exercise, Lieutenant General Hervé Brejean, who was responsible for the exercise, raised his voice against the roar of gunfire and once again praised the excellence of the Leopard 2 to the reporters. He explained that the tsunami of more than 300,000 Russian soldiers put the Ukrainian front line in the most dangerous situation since the beginning of the war, and he said, “If we can introduce a highly efficient tank like the Leopard, “It will allow us to do that. open a breakthrough and think of a counter-offense,” he said, adding that the Leopard 2 would be a key element in Ukraine’s spring attack.
Germany agreed in January to give the Leopard 2 to Ukraine, which is considered one of the best tanks in the West. Defense Minister Pistorius said last week that all 18 promised Leopard 2A6s would be delivered to Ukraine in March.
Ukrainian soldiers were required to learn to operate the Leopard 2 in just six weeks, and German trainers said they were satisfied with the results.
One of the officers in charge said, “We achieved more than 80% of the targets (during the exercise), which is a very good result for such a short training period.”
However, it was also necessary to remove some of the conventional tank approaches from the mind. Another officer said that they initially tried to turn the Leopard 2 instead of retreating, because Russian tanks, which the Ukrainian troops were familiar with, could only retreat slowly, leaving them open to the fire of the enemy on a rice field. However, the Leopard 2 can retreat quickly when fired, keeping its thicker frontal armor facing the enemy.
As the Lewpard 2 also has excellent night vision equipment, the Ukrainian troops have also been trained at night to make the most of its strengths.
A Ukrainian artilleryman warned the Russians to wait for the arrival of the Leopard 2. “A friend of mine who works in Ukrainian intelligence told me that the Russian army is in great turmoil because of the Leopard 2. This will allow us to achieve the change that is needed and the Leopard 2. Military units will Other Ukrainians who fight side by side feel more comfortable.”
