Morocco hands over 20 tanks to Ukraine - media

This equipment could be seen during the visit of Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala to the workshops of Excalibur Army in Sternberk, which was reconstructing them, the specialized military publication Menadefense reported on Sunday, January 22, 2023.

"In total, the Moroccan army had 148 T-72s, 136 T-72Bs, and 12 T-72BKs from the Belarusian army's warehouses, purchased in two batches in 1999 and 2000," the article says.

At that time, in order to deter Algerian armored divisions, Morocco was creating a brigade of post-Soviet equipment in the north of the country.

According to Menadefense, the decision to supply these T-72Bs to Ukraine was made "during the Ramstein summit held on April 26, 2022, organized by the United States."

"At this summit, Tunisia and Morocco were the only countries representing North Africa. Tunisia sent two cargo planes to Rzeszow airport in Poland, which centralizes logistical assistance to Ukraine, and Morocco seemed to follow suit, sending not humanitarian aid but weapons," the newspaper notes.

Photos from January 9 of the Czech Prime Minister's visit, published in the public domain, show Moroccan tanks undergoing repair.

"The deep reconstruction of the tank chassis indicates that they have been very poorly maintained and that Morocco does not have the means to keep them in service," Menadefense concludes.