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Ukrainian soldiers repair a Leopard 2 tank near the front line in Zaporizhzhia
Photograph:
Andriy Andriyenko / AP
The Leopard 2A6 tanks supplied by Germany to Ukraine will not be repaired at a joint repair center in Poland, contrary to what was originally planned. A spokesman for Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) confirmed on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius that the weapon systems for the repairs are currently to be brought either to Germany or Lithuania. Thus, the plans for a german-Polish cooperation in tank repair have failed for the time being. The tanks urgently need to be serviced because of the heavy use in battle.
Originally, the Ministry of Defense had aimed for the Polish tank manufacturer PGZ, together with the German arms industry, to repair the Leopards at two locations in Poland. Because of the proximity to Ukraine, the option was considered favorable to bring the tanks back to the front as quickly as possible. Already in the spring, Pistorius and his Polish counterpart had signed a corresponding declaration of intent. After that, Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) were to negotiate the details with the Poles, and Berlin would have borne a large part of the costs.
The talks, however, dragged on for months. First of all, the Polish side put forward options that were unacceptable to the German industry. On the one hand, PGZ did not want to provide a warranty for the work carried out for the repairs. Later, the Polish side presented price expectations that were unacceptable to the German industry representatives. For example, the PGZ wanted to charge more than 100,000 euros for an initial inspection, while in Germany manufacturers charge about 12,000 euros for such an initial damage diagnosis.
About two weeks ago, the dispute escalated publicly. After SPIEGEL reported on the behind-the-scenes dispute shortly before the defense minister's trip to Poland, Pistorius gave the negotiators a kind of ultimatum. Rather undiplomatically, he told his Polish counterpart in front of the cameras that he hoped that an agreement could be reached in the next ten days. Even if Pistorius did not put it clearly, his message was understood: Either you come to an agreement quickly, or Berlin pulls the ripcord.
Now the Minister of Defense has already reacted before the end of the ten days. First, the »Handelsblatt« had reported on the process. Even though the Ministry of Defense emphasizes that talks with Poland are still ongoing, the deal with Poland seems to have been buried. To ensure that the Leopards delivered from Germany remain operational, they are now being shipped by the industry to Germany or Lithuania and repaired there. German NATO troops are stationed in Lithuania, which is why the industry there already has capacity for repair. Nevertheless, a repair in Poland would have been much less complicated, it was said in Berlin.
Is Pistorius pulling the Patriots out of Poland?
From the German point of view, the dispute with Poland was never just about money. It is not only in the defense department that it is certain that the Polish side deliberately delayed the talks in order to embarrass Berlin. The ruling PiS party hardly misses an opportunity to taunt the federal government. Even before the delivery of the battle tanks, Warsaw had publicly exposed Berlin as a brakeman. It is not only in Berlin that the idea suggests that the squabbles at the tank repair center could also be politically motivated.
Now the dispute could escalate. During his visit to Poland, for example, the minister had indirectly made the further stationing of German Patriot air defence systems in Poland dependent on an agreement in the tank dispute. Poland would like the Patriots, who protect an important transshipment station for arms deliveries to Ukraine near the Ukrainian border, stay there longer. Pistorius must now decide whether the weapons systems will remain in Poland or return to Germany.