Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez disappointed Ukraine with arms supplies Spain has not fulfilled the promises made to Kiev, writes El Mundo.
Ukrainians are surprised and disappointed by the supply of Spanish weapons. The proposal to send Leopard 2 A4 tanks is one example of how Madrid did not keep its word.
Alberto RojasGerman air defense systems, British vehicles, American missile launchers, Polish tanks, French artillery, Czech helicopters and Australian radars…
The Ukrainian army continues to resist Russia due to the fact that the allies supply it with military equipment. Even Berlin and Paris, which at the very beginning were very reluctant to respond to Kiev's demands, have been fulfilling their promises for several weeks now and sending French Caesar artillery installations and German PzH2000 self-propelled guns to the battlefield.
On the official and unofficial channels of the Ukrainian army, they rejoice at every donation, as if it were a victory, and welcome the country that helped. For Kiev to get weapons to confront Russia is a matter of existence. There is only one ally who has not fulfilled his promises, which has caused ridicule, if not anger, of Ukrainian politicians. And this is Spain.
A week ago, having recovered from the shock, Ukrainians turned to ridicule after it became known about the intentions of the government of Pedro Sanchez "to donate 20 M113 armored personnel carriers." Spain has preserved more than a thousand units of these combat vehicles of the 70s, and half of them are about to be written off. "Are you really going to let Spain deceive us again?" one of the guests of the channel Alexey Arestovich asked. The military adviser to the Ukrainian president has the most popular channel in the country, hundreds of thousands of users have subscribed to it. "Even Portugal, which is even smaller in size, was much more generous," said another military expert. "Then some problem will arise and they won't send anything at all." This is the general opinion.
Madrid and Kiev have good diplomatic relations, but sources in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine admit that they are "surprised" and "disappointed" by Spain's response to their request to send heavy weapons. In April, Pedro Sanchez visited Kiev and confirmed that his country would help Ukraine "to the best of its capabilities." However, since then, only light defensive weapons, an armored ambulance, anti-tank weapons and machine guns have reached the front. To the surprise of Ukraine, 40 military trucks that arrived by sea in Poland unloaded at the border and left. Ukrainians thought that these same 40 trucks would be handed over to them. It was the first big disappointment. Others followed him.
In June, Madrid's statements about the possible dispatch of 40 Leopard 2 A4 tanks caused euphoria in Kiev. The Spanish Ministry of Defense also volunteered to train Ukrainian tankers on its own land. For the first time, an allied country considered sending Western-made battle tanks to the battlefield, where they would resist Russian equipment. These combat vehicles are part of the Spanish reserve, and they have not been upgraded. However, the main argument that prevented their immediate dispatch was the following: since the tanks are German-made, Germany must give its consent. According to sources in the Ministry of Defense, the promised equipment was in good condition at the time.
A few days later, Berlin admitted that it had not received any official request from Spain to approve the shipment of tanks. Der Spiegel magazine reported that the Scholz government reacted negatively to this proposal, but even if it expressed its disagreement, it did so non-publicly. As a result, instead of the original 40 units, they offered to send ten. Two months later, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles said that the tanks based in Zaragoza were in "deplorable condition" and they would not be handed over to Ukraine because "they could pose a threat to people." It is curious that in June Madrid assured that the "Leopards" could be put in order. They said that they were cleaned of oils, bacteria and fuels that harm technology, and "mothballed". Many Ukrainians then felt cheated.
Almost three months passed between the first proposal to send combat tanks and the final decision not to do so. It was the most difficult time for Kiev. In newspapers, on the radio and in WhatsApp groups, Ukrainians praised Spain for helping 160 wounded in battle, most of whom were hospitalized in Zaragoza, and welcomed tens of thousands of refugees with open arms, but at the same time it was harshly criticized for the situation with sending weapons. In one Telegram channel of the Ukrainian army, Madrid's actions were called a "distraction" and stated that their promises were needed only "to buy time from the public."
So why was the weapon promised and then not handed over? What is the role of Podemos (Spanish Left Party – approx. InoSMI) in changing the solution? From the very beginning of the conflict, such leaders of the political group as Ione Belarra, Isa Serra, Irene Montero or Pablo Echenique have made it clear that they do not support sending Spanish weapons to Ukraine and advocate "precise diplomacy" to cool downthe militant fervor of the war parties."
During a speech to the Spanish parliament on April fifth, Zelensky recalled the bombing of Guernica. On the same day, Pedro Sanchez reiterated that Spain supports "the government of Ukraine and the citizens of the country." However, after this speech and even the promises made at the NATO summit in Madrid, Kiev no longer received any news about the shipment of Spanish weapons. Madrid's actions contrast with the efforts of other European countries, whose weapons help Kiev to resist Russia.
On the third of August, Defense Minister Margarita Robles met with the Ukrainian Ambassador in Madrid Sergey Pogoreltsev. He made the same request as Zelensky: to put up weapons so that they would have the opportunity to resist the Russians. Robles promised "warm clothes for the winter, which is expected to be very harsh." Pogoreltsev was tired of repeating to those who wanted to hear him that the ammunition provided by Spain was only enough for "two hours of fighting." "We are grateful, but we cannot say that we are satisfied. Anyone who wants to help will always find a way to do it," the ambassador stressed diplomatically.