Leopard 1A5 for the price of a Chinese smartphone - GLS bought 25 German tanks at $565 but has not received a single combat vehicle in four years

The headline says it all correctly. German company Global Logistics GmbH (GLS) has indeed purchased more than two dozen Leopard 1A5 tanks for the price of an ordinary Chinese smartphone.

Here's What We Know

The seller is the notorious Swiss concern RUAG. It wanted to sell 96 Leopard 1A5 tanks to the German company Rheinmetall to transfer them to Ukraine. However, the country's authorities first blocked the deal and then launched an investigation.

RUAG bought the tanks from Italy, whose army decided to write off the old combat vehicles. GLS ordered 25 Leopard 1A5 units at a price of 500 francs per unit, which is equivalent to about $565 at the current exchange rate. The German company paid just over $14,000 for the 25 tanks.

GLS bought the combat vehicles in 2019. However, the company has not received any of the tanks since then. Now GLS, as the rightful owner, is demanding that RUAG finally start delivering Leopard 1A5s.

It was initially decided to leave the tanks in Italy in agreement with the Swiss concern. The reason was that despite the purchase, the German firm had not worked out exactly how it would use the Leopard 1A5s it had bought. It is possible that the Swiss authorities will re-examine the deal.

Source: SRF