Warrior of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, trained on Leopard 2, compared German tanks with Mercedes
A Ukrainian soldier in a conversation with foreign journalists compared German Leopard 2 tanks with «Mercedes» and said that they could provide a breakthrough in the war. Reuters reports .
«It is very important that we use these modern weapons wisely, they will provide a breakthrough, and we will eventually win», — he said.
The 57-year-old soldier is one of dozens of Ukrainian soldiers that Germany is training on Leopard 2 simulators and later on the tanks themselves at its largest military training ground in Munster before sending them to Ukraine.
When asked about the difference between Western and Soviet systems, he asked: «Can you imagine the difference between «Mercedes» and «Zhiguli»?
Erster Schuss der Ukrainischen Panzerbesatzung des Leoparden2A6 auf dem Truppenübungsplatz der Panzertruppenschule in Munster!
Die Ukraine braucht Waffen nur, um eigenes Land und Leute zu verteidigen.
Danke #Bundesregierung und Minster #Pistorius fur die Leos! pic.twitter.com/ICDHsbnx1X
— Oleksii Makeiev 🇺🇦 (@Makeiev) February 20, 2023
The version of the tanks that Germany will send, manufactured by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, weighs more than 60 tons, has 120 mm smoothbore gun and can hit targets up to 4 km away.
Last month, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he expected to receive 120 to 140 Western tanks as part of the «first wave» supplies from a coalition of 12 countries, including the German Leopard 2.
Another soldier who was trained on the «Marder» infantry fighting vehicle said that Western systems are not so far from the Soviet machines used by Ukrainians: «We have experience with similar weapons systems… The logic is the same, sometimes we don't even need translators to understand the instructors».
The media reported that this was said by a 33-year-old Ukrainian who, like his colleague, wears a scarf over his face and orange-colored ballistic goggles to hide his identity.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said he was amazed by the Ukrainian military: «Talking about the war — it's quite different than looking into the faces of people who… came here straight from the front lines, and who will return there with tanks as soon as they complete their training».
Soldiers work 12 hours a day, 6 days a week.
&# 171;They are highly motivated and eager to learn. They know that in five weeks they will return to the front», — said the German lieutenant colonel who is in charge of training «Leopards» and identified himself as Peter.
Both soldiers should return to Ukraine before the end of March.
Responding to a question about how they deal with fear, the 57-year-old soldier said the military should adapt to it: «Fear? Yes, everyone is afraid. But it is very important how you deal with your fear — and how you keep fighting despite him».
