In the case of the Swiss Leopard 1A5 MBTs and additional spare parts acquired by Rheinmetall on the 5th of June, there is now finally clarity as to their intended use.
As part of my research into the future use of the 71 main battle tanks and contract modalities, a RUAG MRO spokesperson referred me today to an enquiry from the Swiss People’s Party on the subject.
The Swiss National Council answered this enquiry on the 10th of June and announced with absolute certainty that the Leopard 1 MBTs acquired by Rheinmetall from RUAG MRO stocks will not be used in a Ringtausch benefiting Ukraine.
Instead, the German defence giant wants to close global supply gaps for Leopard 1 MBTs and tanks based on the Leopard 1. The latter includes, for example, the Brückenlegepanzer Biber AVLB or the Pionierpanzer Dachs AEV.
These are still used today in numerous armies around the world.
Essentially, it is about securing the supply of spare parts, which will be indispensable for the repair and maintenance of Leopard 1 systems in the coming years.
There had previously been repeated speculation that, as part of the German Ringtausch programme, Rheinmetall could refurbish the Leopard 1A5s previously stored in Italy, possibly increase their combat value and then supply them to a country such as Greece, which in return would hand over its own Leopard 1A5s to Ukraine.
There, the Leopard 1A5 and other systems based on the Leopard 1 have been successfully used against Russian invaders for years. However, a delivery to the Ukrainian army is prohibited under Swiss law.
The RUAG MRO commented on this in a press release as follows: “The contract ensures that neither the tanks nor the associated spare parts may be supplied to Ukraine either directly or indirectly”.
With the announcement that the 71 — later 96 — Leopard 1A5s from RUAG MRO stocks will not be supplied to Ukraine, even in a roundabout way, one of the largest sources of future deliveries of the still effective main battle tanks to the Ukrainian army has dried up.
As things stand, the German government has already delivered 103 Leopard 1A5 MBTs to Ukraine in cooperation with Denmark and the Netherlands. Only 32 of them are still scheduled for handover (as of April 2025).
This means that deliveries to Ukraine will very probably come to an end this year unless additional Leopard 1A5s can be found.
It is currently unclear what will happen after that. According to publicly available information, neither the German government nor the government of any other country has yet concluded a comprehensive contract for the production and delivery of modern main battle tanks for Ukraine.
In view of the fact that such a main battle tanks do not roll off the production line within a few months, this should have happened long ago.
If you liked this post, consider following me on X, Bluesky, or Telegram. If you like, you can also leave me a tip on Ko-fi.
Changelog
- 16th of June 2025 — Additional information (including link) included that Rheinmetall will also acquire the remaining 25 Leopard 1A5s
