Following Germany, the Czech government also asked Switzerland to sell Leopard 2 tanks to them.

Viola Amherd, Vice President of Switzerland, mentioned this in a comment to SRF.

According to her, Switzerland first received a request from Berlin, and now another one from Prague.

Amherd stressed that Bern wants to keep a certain stock of main battle tanks to guarantee its own security.

“In addition, there will be a certain number of tanks that we do not need and which can be delivered if the parliament decides to write them off,” Amherd said.

As previously reported, Germany intends to purchase the Leopard 2 tanks stored in Switzerland.

According to the plans of the German government, the tanks planned to be purchased from Switzerland will not be transferred to Ukraine but should strengthen the defense capabilities of European countries.

Germany expects that the purchased Leopard 2 will make it possible to replenish the shortage of heavy armored vehicles in the countries of the European Union and NATO that are supplying tanks to Ukraine.

However, an official decision of the Swiss parliament is a prerequisite for the implementation of such an agreement.

Rheinmetall is negotiating the purchase of Leopard 1 tanks with the Swiss company RUAG.

The Germans wish to buy 96 tanks that previously belonged to Italy. RUAG repurchased the Italian Leopard 1 tanks in 2016.

The media emphasize that the deal is not possible due to the position of the Swiss government, as Rheinmetall made it clear that the final users of the weapons will be Ukraine.