PM Morawiecki: pressure and diplomacy make sense

"Something that was not even possible a month ago, became a reality yesterday. It shows that all the discussions, diplomacy as well as, what can I say, pressure make sense," Mateusz Morawiecki said during a news conference in Komorowo.

Germany said on Wednesday (January 25) it would supply its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, overcoming misgivings about sending heavy weaponry that Kyiv sees as crucial to defeat Russia's invasion but Moscow casts as a dangerous provocation.

Pressure has been building for weeks on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government to send the tanks and allow NATO allies to do the same before expected spring offensives by both sides.

Scholz's government had stalled, wary of moves that could prompt Russia to escalate the war or draw NATO into becoming a party to the conflict.

Germany's decision paves the way for other countries such as Poland, Spain, Finland, the Netherlands and Norway to supply some of their Leopard tanks to Ukraine, going some way towards delivering the hundreds of tanks that Ukraine says it needs.

"Tanks are not there to drive in a parade, tanks are produced to support those who defend their freedom and sovereignty," Morawiecki said.

Ukraine will now push for Western fourth generation fighter jets such as the U.S. F-16 after securing supplies of main battle tanks, an adviser to Ukraine's defence minister said.

"The next big hurdle will now be the fighter jets," Yuriy Sak, who advises Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov, told Reuters by phone.

Ukraine's Air Force has a fleet of ageing Soviet-era fighter jets that came off the assembly line before Kyiv even declared independence more than 31 years ago. The warplanes are used for intercept missions and to attack Russian positions.

"If we get them (Western fighter jets), the advantages on the battlefield will be just immense... It's not just F-16s (U.S. multirole fighter jets): fourth generation aircraft, this is what we want."

Western military support has been vital for Kyiv and has rapidly evolved during the war. Before the invasion, even the idea of supplying lethal aid to Ukraine was highly controversial but Western supplies have since shattered taboo after taboo.

"They didn't want to give us heavy artillery, then they did. They didn't want to give us Himars systems, then they did. They didn't want to give us tanks, now they're giving us tanks. Apart from nuclear weapons, there is nothing left that we will not get," Sak said.

Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia last February, has also said it wants to receive long-range missiles from the West.