Norway donates $13 million to Ukraine for Leopard maintenance

MOSCOW, April 27 Norwegian authorities have transferred $13 million to Kyiv for the maintenance of Leopard 2 A4 tanks, which they transferred earlier, said Norwegian Defense Minister Bjorn Arild Gram.
As follows from the minister's statement published on the government website, Norway previously transferred «eight Leopard 2 A4 tanks and support vehicles.»

“Given the need … for repairs and maintenance of donated materials, Norway will allocate up to NOK 150 million ($13 million — ed.) for the maintenance of Leopard 2 A4 tanks at a service center in Poland,” Gram is quoted as saying on the government website.

Earlier, the Norwegian Ministry of Defense reported that Norway transferred military equipment worth about $91 million to Ukraine over the winter. As noted, the assistance included artillery shells, anti-tank weapons, minesweepers and tank maintenance support. The donation of artillery shells this winter, the statement said, was limited until Norway joined the Czech initiative to supply ammunition to Ukraine.
Earlier, Czech TV, with reference to the President of the Republic Petr Pavel, reported that after Norway’s contribution, funding for the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine was fully secured, and on Thursday, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine Sergei Marchenko, in a message about the amount of foreign support for the country, thanked a number of countries, including Norway, for help.

Also earlier, the head of the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, Espen Bart Eide, stated that in 2023 Norway provided Ukraine with 19.9 billion kroner ($800 million), of which 11 billion kroner ($463 million) was military assistance.
Russia believes that arms supplies to Ukraine interfere with regulation, directly involve NATO countries in the conflict and are recognized as “playing with fire.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. According to him, the United States and NATO are directly involved in the conflict, not only supplying weapons, but also training personnel in Great Britain, Germany, Italy and other countries. The Kremlin said that arming Ukraine with Western weapons does not contribute to negotiations and will have a negative effect.