Rheinmetall could deliver 139 Leopard tanks to Ukraine - RND

FILE PHOTO: German Army Leopard 2 tank fires during NATO enhanced Forward Presence battle group military exercise Crystal Arrow 2021 in Adazi, Latvia March 26, 2021 REUTERS/Ints Kalnins

German defence group Rheinmetall could deliver 139 Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine if required, a spokesperson for the company told media group RND.

Germany is coming under intense pressure from Ukraine and some NATO allies, such as Poland, to allow Kyiv to be supplied with German-made Leopard 2 tanks for its defence against Russia's invasion.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has so far held back from supplying the tanks or allowing other NATO countries to do so.

FILE PHOTO: A Leopard battle tank of the Armoured Brigade takes part in the Army mechanised exercise Arrow 22 exercise at the Niinisalo garrison in Kankaanpaa, Finland May 4, 2022. Picture taken May 4, 2022. Lehtikuva/Heikki Saukkomaa via REUTERS

Manufacturer Rheinmetall could deliver 29 Leopard 2A4 tanks by April/May and a further 22 of the same model around the end of 2023 or early 2024, the spokesperson was quoted as saying.

It could also supply 88 older Leopard 1 tanks, the person said, without giving a timeframe for their potential delivery.

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz; Editing by Mark Potter)