Macron over a barrel after Germany releases Leopards

EMMANUEL MACRON is under pressure to deliver France’s Leclerc heavy tanks to Ukraine after Germany announced its decision to follow in Britain’s footsteps and send two battalions of its Leopard 2.

The French president yesterday said he welcomed Germany’s announcement on the Leopard 2, saying it “built on” France’s promise of supplying armoured vehicles.

But Xavier Bertrand, centre-right head of the Hauts-de-france region, said Mr Macron must now follow in the footsteps of Germany and Britain, which has offered a squadron, or 14, of its Challenger 2 tanks.

“This is not a decision to be taken lightly but it must be taken,” Mr Bertrand said. “We must be by the side of our allies and the Ukrainians… Vladimir Putin must understand that we are resolutely on the side of freedom and we want this to end at all costs.”

Mr Macron has stopped short of sending the heavier Leclerc tanks, which have a 120mm smooth bore gun, and which Ukraine’s defence ministry called “compact, sporty, easy to park” in a tongue-in-cheek video last week.

The country has 222 Leclercs but a large number are under revision. At the weekend, the French president said: “I have asked the defence ministry to work on it. Nothing is excluded.”

Meanwhile, Switzerland said it would allow some demining equipment made in the country to be used in Ukraine, in the second sign this week it is moving away from its traditional neutral stance. It also said it would implement the EU’S ninth package of sanctions on Russia.

The announcement came a day after it moved a step closer to allowing Swissmade weaponry to be transferred to Ukraine via third countries. A parliamentary

‘Putin must understand we are resolutely on the side of freedom and want this to end at all costs’

commission decided the country’s military neutrality would not be violated as long as it made no direct arms exports.

Switzerland has come under growing pressure of late from Germany, Spain and Denmark to loosen its War Materiel Act, under which export requests cannot be approved if the recipient country is in an international armed conflict.

Spain is still awaiting a response to a request last week to transfer to Ukraine two 35mm anti-aircraft guns that were imported from Switzerland.