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		</div><p>Poland will ask Germany for permission to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has said.</p>
<p>Mr Morawiecki did not specify when the request will be made, saying that Poland is building a coalition of nations ready to send German-built Leopards.</p>
<p>Poland needs the consent of Germany to send the tanks to a non-Nato country.</p>
<p>Even if there is no permission from Germany, Warsaw will take its own decisions, Mr Morawiecki said.</p>
<p>German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock told French TV channel LCI on Sunday that Poland has not formally asked for Berlin’s approval to share some of its German-made Leopards, but added “if we were asked, we would not stand in the way”.</p>
<p>Regarding Ms Baerbock’s comments, Mr Morawiecki said that “exerting pressure makes sense” and that her words are a “spark of hope” that Germany may even take part in the coalition.</p>
<p>In a news conference in the western city of Poznan, Mr Morawiecki said Ms Baerbock “sent a different message that offers a spark of hope that not only Germany will no longer block, but maybe finally will offer heavy, modern equipment in support of Ukraine”.</p>
<p>He added: “We are constantly exerting pressure on the government in Berlin to make its Leopards available.”</p>
<p>According to Mr Morawiecki, Germany has “more than 350 active Leopards and about 200 in storage”.</p>
<p>The Ukrainian government says that tanks, and especially the German-made Leopards, are vital if it is to prevail over the Kremlin’s invading forces.</p>
<p>Ms Baerbock made positive comments about the possibility of sending tanks to Ukraine.</p>
<p>German officials “know how important these tanks are” and “this is why we are discussing this now with our partners,” Ms Baerbock said in interview clips posted by LCI.</p>
<p>Ukraine’s supporters pledged billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine during a meeting at Ramstein Air Base in Germany on Friday.</p>
<p>International defence leaders discussed Ukraine’s urgent request for the Leopard 2 tanks, and the failure to work out an agreement overshadowed the new commitments.</p>
<p>Germany is one of the main donors of weapons to Ukraine, and it ordered a review of its Leopard 2 stocks in preparation for a possible green light.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, the government in Berlin has shown caution at each step of increasing its military aid to Ukraine, a hesitancy seen as rooted in its history and political culture.</p>
<p>Germany’s tentativeness has drawn criticism, particularly from Poland and the Baltic states, countries on Nato’s eastern flank that feel especially threatened by Russia’s renewed aggression.</p>
<p>German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said on Monday it was important for Germany not to take a “reckless” step that might be regretted afterwards, adding that any decision will not be rushed.</p>
<p>“These are hard questions of life and death,” he added. “We have to ask what this means for the defence of our own country.”</p>
<p>Pressed on how long a decision on sending tanks might take, Mr Hebestreit said: “I assume that it’s not a question of months now.”</p>
<p>Moscow, in response to the pledges of sophisticated Western weapons for Kyiv’s military, has stepped up its warnings that escalation risks catastrophe.</p>
<p>Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov reaffirmed Moscow’s claim that the Western supplies could lead to “unpredictable” consequences.</p>
<p>“We have said on numerous occasions that escalation is the most dangerous path, and the consequences may be unpredictable,” Mr Ryabkov said.</p>
<p>“Our signals are not listened to, and Russia’s adversaries keep raising the stakes.”</p>
<p>With both sides’ battlefield positions mostly deadlocked during the winter months, the Kremlin’s forces have kept up their bombardments of Ukrainian areas.</p>
<p>Kharkiv governor Oleh Synyehubov said on Monday that Russian forces shelled several towns and villages in the north-eastern region over the previous 24 hours, killing a 67-year-old woman and leaving another resident wounded.</p>
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