Is German reluctance to send tanks undermining the country as a reliable European partner? | DW News

"Ukraine is running out of personnel, it's running out of weapons, every day counts, they are bleeding," Roderich Kiesewetter of Germany's opposition Christian Democrats (CDU) and former Bundeswehr general staff officer, told DW. "This is really horrifying," he said, adding that Germany is undermining its role in Europe.

Germany has been at the center of the tank debate. Ukraine has said it wants German-made Leopard and US M1 Abrams tanks.

The country's new defense minister, Boris Pistorius, said Berlin would "balance all the pros and contras before we decide things like that... I am very sure that there will be a decision in the short term, but I don't know how the decision will look."

Berlin has yet to give the go-ahead to Leopard-owning allies like Poland or Finland, who desire to send them to Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv would continue to push for modern heavy armor.

"Yes, we will still have to fight for the delivery of modern tanks, but every day we make it more obvious that there is no alternative to taking a decision about tanks," he said.

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