24 November 2022

Ukraine conflict: Czech Republic and Slovakia to receive first Leopard 2A4 tanks from Germany in December

by Nicholas Fiorenza

Four weeks of training of the first eight Czech tank drivers and instructors have been completed at the Bundeswehr Streitkräftebasis support command's driver training centre in Munster using the driver training variant of the Leopard 2A4s that are being transferred to the Czech Republic and Slovakia in December. (Bundeswehr/Susanne Hähnel)

The Czech Republic will become the first country to receive Leopard 2A4 tanks as part of a backfilling agreement with Germany, the Bundeswehr announced on its website on 21 November. Fourteen Leopard 2A4s and an armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) from Bundeswehr depots will begin to be transferred to the Czech 7th Mechanised Brigade's 73rd Tank Battalion in Práslavice in December.

The Czech Republic and Germany agreed on 11 October on the transfer of 14 Leopard 2A4 main battle tanks (MBTs) and a Büffel ARV for the Army of the Czech Republic (ACR). Among the four documents was one signed by Rheinmetall to supply the armoured vehicles to the Czech Republic, including an initial package of spare parts, ammunition, and three years of service support that includes training of Czech personnel.

The vehicles, which came from the inventories of the Bundeswehr and the Swiss Bundesheer, were bought by Rheinmetall after they were decommissioned.

Meanwhile, four weeks of training of the first eight Czech tank drivers and instructors have been completed at the Bundeswehr Streitkräftebasis support command's driver training centre in Munster. German and Dutch Leopard 2A4 tank drivers are also trained at the centre, and eight more Czechs will receive training there during the first half of 2023. The training is being conducted with a driver training variant of the Leopard 2A4 that is also used by Austria.

The Czech Republic will become the first country to receive Leopard 2A4 tanks as part of a backfilli...

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