Russian forces have destroyed another two German-made Leopard tanks, according to a report issued by Russia’s Defense Ministry on Friday.
It stated that Russia’s “Western” military group had opened fire on Ukrainian forces near the settlements of Artemovka in Russia’s Lugansk People’s Republic, as well as Sinkovka, Berestovoe and Ivanovka in Ukraine’s Kharkov Region.
The ministry claimed that Kiev’s forces had lost a total of 20 servicemen, two Leopard tanks, and three other vehicles in the attacks.
RT has obtained footage purporting to show the destruction of the German tanks. According to the commander of the brigade that destroyed the tanks and supplied the video, the vehicles were discovered at night and destroyed at 8am using Lancet UAVs.
The Defense Ministry also reported that Russia’s Southern Group of forces repelled four Ukrainian attacks near the settlements of Vodyanoye and Maryinka in the Donetsk People’s Republic. The ministry’s latest report suggested that up to 200 Ukrainian servicemen had been killed and wounded in those attacks, and that two infantry fighting vehicles and three cars were also destroyed.
Meanwhile, Ukraine has reportedly rejected some Leopard tank deliveries from its Western partners. According to German news outlet Der Spiegel, Kiev refused to accept a batch of 10 Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks from Berlin, arguing that they were in need of extensive repair and maintenance work requiring special parts and technical expertise that Kiev simply doesn’t have.
It follows confirmation from Denmark that it was using tanks from museum exhibits to train Ukrainian crews how to operate them.
In February, Berlin vowed to deliver more than 100 Leopard tanks to Kiev in a joint effort with the Netherlands and Denmark. However, according to a Die Welt report in early August, only 10% of the pledged tanks had so far been delivered.
After Kiev rejected the delivery, the German side reportedly dispatched a team of specialists to Poland, where the tanks were supposed to enter Ukraine.
After examination, the specialists allegedly concluded that the Leopards were “already quite worn out after the training of the Ukrainian soldiers in Germany and needed repairs.”