Denmark borrows Leopard 1 from three museums to train Ukrainian military

This is reported by Forbes.

Ukrainian tank crews began arriving in Denmark in May. The Danes have taken responsibility for the first phase of their training - the basic stuff. The Germans, on the other hand, have taken over the second phase, with translators and contractors from German industry assisting in both phases.

The training takes place at a training ground in Germany and lasts six weeks.

Most of the tanks belong to the German company Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft and have been in storage for two decades. They were in need of repair.

“It is clear that we do not have that much time, because it is important that they [the tankers] come back to Ukraine and can help their comrades in the defense of Ukraine,” said Maj. Kim Fonseca, chief of staff of the Danish army’s armored battalion.

So the consortium turned to Danish museums for help. Apparently, the few Leopard 1A5s on display in the museums were in better condition than the nearly 100 that were stored in warehouses. The museums loaned six working tanks so that training for Ukrainian soldiers could begin immediately.

• The three countries announced in February that they would transfer 100 German-made tanks "in the coming months."

• Tanks from Denmark and Germany were supposed to arrive in early summer.

• In August, Germany announced that it would provide Ukraine with 30 Leopard 1 tanks.

• On September 8, the first 10 Leopard 1 battle tanks from the batch that Denmark had promised the Ukrainian Armed Forces arrived in Ukraine. At the same time, Danish instructors are training soldiers.