It’s important for Norwegian and European security that Russia doesn’t win with its aggression against Ukraine.” And we believe it’s absolutely right to take away our own material to support Ukraine. But Gram-who served at the Norway-Russian border as a conscript-told me: “We believe that with this donation of tanks, Norway will still have a satisfactory national preparedness. While German pacifists opposed the tank donations on ideological grounds, other governments worried about weakening their own defenses, especially with an aggressive and out-of-control Russia on the border. The situation in Ukraine is approaching a critical phase and they are dependent on rapid and extensive Western support.” “It’s more crucial than ever to support Ukraine’s defense struggle. “This donation is an important and requested contribution,” Norway’s defense minister, Bjorn Arild Gram, told me.

In total, twelve countries, including Finland, Norway, and Poland, have pledged to donate some 100 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. The German chancellor knew that a vocal chunk of the German public ( 43 percent just before his decision) opposed sending Ukraine main battle tanks-but that a larger chunk (46 percent) supported doing so and other Western countries had already decided to give Ukraine some of their Leopards. 25, that Germany would be sending 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. “Trust me, trust the government,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said when he announced, on Jan. The 93 percent accuracy the first group achieved in its final live-fire exercise suggests the tanks are in good hands. “I’ve never seen a more motivated group,” a Norwegian trainer told me. There were fears that Ukrainian soldiers were not trained to use the tanks, and that the mighty-and expensive-machines might be wasted. It took a lot of asking, a lot of public pressure, and a lot of agonizing among the donors before the tanks were confirmed. After months of waiting, Leopards 2, powerful German-built main battle tanks, are finally arriving in Ukraine.

Tank battle in the big keep