Berlin said late last month that it was aiming to send around 30 battle tanks to help Ukrainian forces fight Russia's invasion after pressure from Kyiv and its supporters to greenlight the supplies.
But German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said after a meeting of Ukraine's backers in Brussels that so far it had gathered only 14 newer A6 type Leopard tanks and three from Portugal.
"Let's be clear: we have not reached a battalion," Pistorius said.
"It will be half a battalion."
He added: "For the German Leopards, I want to say again that ours will be delivered in the last week of March. That is certain."
Germany, Poland and Ukraine held talks with other NATO members on the sidelines of a meeting in Brussels on Tuesday to try to whip up more tanks for Kyiv.
Pistorius said more talks would take place with potential donors later this week.
He said Berlin was against the Netherlands sending 14 Leopard 2 tanks as that would "weaken the operational readiness" of a joint German-Dutch brigade where they are used.
Ukraine has pleaded with its Western backers to send modern battle tanks to help it push back a renewed Russian offensive and allow it to go on the attack itself.
Poland has also committed to sending a battalion of Leopard 2 tanks to Kyiv and is currently training Ukrainian troops to use them.
Canada has already sent several Leopard tanks and Norway has pledged eight more.
Major Ukraine donor Estonia calls on allies to do more
Tallinn (AFP) Feb 16, 2023 -
Estonia, which has contributed the most military aid to Ukraine by share of its economic size, on Thursday called on allies to do more to help the war-torn country.
The Baltic state's Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur made the appeal following talks in Tallinn with visiting US counterpart Lloyd Austin.
"Whilst the United States is the biggest contributor in absolute terms, Estonia is in relative terms," Pevkur told reporters.
"Estonia's military assistance to Ukraine recently exceeded one percent of our GDP. Still we can and must do more."
He went on to list three ways in which the global community could further help Kyiv fight back against Russia's invasion, which began nearly a year ago.
Pevkur urged European and NATO allies to up their defence spending to over two percent of GDP, as "more can only be given when there is more to give".
Estonia itself has said it plans to exceed the three-percent mark next year.
Pevkur also called on the international coalition to reach at least 100 billion euros in combined military aid to Ukraine by the end of the year.
"We can talk about how substance also matters but trust me, there is at least 100 billion worth of things Ukraine needs already at this moment," he said.
To date, the United States and other countries have already contributed nearly half of that in security assistance to Ukraine.
Aid for Ukraine has covered almost all types of military equipment, from uniforms, small arms and ammunition to artillery rocket systems, air defences and armoured vehicles.
Finally, Pevkur called on the European Union to "urgently" support the Ukrainian defence with one million artillery rounds.
In recent days, there have been worries that Ukraine was fast depleting the stockpiles of artillery shells from the US and other allies.
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