Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Following intense pressure from its allies, Germany appears to be inching toward approving deliveries of high-tech Leopard 2 main battle tanks that Ukraine and its biggest Western backers hope will boost Kyiv's fight against Russian invaders.
Over the weekend German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Berlin would not get in the way if Poland -- arguably Ukraine's most vocal supporter among European Union neighbours -- wants to ship Leopard 2 tanks from its arsenal across the border into Ukraine. And Germany is now not ruling out supplying such tanks to Ukraine itself, cautioning however that the implications of such a step need to be carefully weighed.
Here's a look at what those tanks might mean for Ukraine's defence against Russian forces -- and hopes for driving them out.
Germany's Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, the manufacturer of the Leopard 2, touts it as "the world's leading battle tank" that for over nearly a half-century has combined aspects of firepower, protection, speed and maneuverability, making it adaptable to many types of combat situations.
The 55-ton tank has a crew of four and a range of about 500 kilometres (310 miles), and top speeds of about 68 kilometres per hour (about 42 mph). Now with four main variants, its earliest version first came into service in 1979. Its main weapon is a 120mm smooth bore gun and it has a fully-digital fire-control system.
One big appeal of the German-made tanks are their sheer number: More than 2,000 have been deployed in over a dozen European countries and Canada. Overall, KMW says over 3,500 units have been supplied to 19 countries.
Rheinmetall AG, a German defence contractor that makes the 120mm smoothbore gun on the Leopard 2, says the tank has been deployed by "more nations that any other."
According to a recent analysis by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based global think tank, some 350 Leopard 2s -- in different versions -- have been sent to Greece, and Poland has about 250 of varying types. Finland has 200 in operation or in storage.
For Ukraine's war against Russia, "It is believed that for the Leopard 2 tanks to have any significant effect on the fighting, around 100 tanks would be required," the IISS analysts wrote.
Ukraine's defence minister wants 300 tanks, and some European Union leaders support him on that.
"We need a fleet of 300 tanks," Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said Monday in Brussels, alluding to the wide deployment of Leopards across Europe, and the need for "synchronous" weaponry -- that can operate smoothly together.
Getting Leopards into Ukrainian hands isn't as easy as rolling them across the border from friends farther West in Europe. IISS estimates that three to six weeks of training would be needed for operating crews and support staff to reach basic proficiency.
Yohann Michel, a research analyst for defence and military affairs at IISS, said such tanks could allow Ukraine to go onto the offensive in the 11-month-old conflict that has been stalemated for months following two key Ukrainian counteroffensives that recaptured areas occupied by Russian forces for months in the northeast and south.
"In this type of conflict, it's just not possible to carry out large-scale offensives without the full variety of armored combat equipment and armored vehicles, and tanks are a part of that," he said by phone. In addition to Main Battle Tanks, or MBTs, like the Leopard II, others include infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers.
Western deliveries of Leopard 2s could help equip Ukraine with needed high-caliber munitions to replace its own Soviet-era stockpiles that have been dwindling -- opening a new avenue for supplies of Western firepower to get to Ukraine.
"In my view, that's the primary impact," Michel said by phone. "The second impact, of course, is to increase the number of tanks available in the Ukrainian arsenal," which he estimated at "several hundred" right now.
Germany has final say about whether Leopard 2s can be delivered -- even from other countries' arsenals -- and has been reticent about anyone shipping them to Ukraine.
More-hawkish Western allies have been stepping up the pressure on Germany, but the United States has also refused to send its powerful M1 Abrams tanks.
The United States announced an upcoming new package of military aid that is expected to include nearly 100 Stryker combat vehicles and at least 50 Bradley armored vehicles -- but not the Abrams, which U.S. officials say has complex maintenance needs and may not be the best fit.
Allies and military analysts say the Leopard 2 is diesel-powered -- not driven by jet fuel that powers the M1 Abrams -- and is easier to operate than the big U.S. tanks, and thus has shorter training times.
Britain this month announced it will send Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine, and the Czech Republic and Poland have provided Soviet-era T-72 tanks to Ukrainian forces. French President Emmanuel Macron said Sunday that he had asked his defence minister to "work on" the idea of sending some of France's Leclerc battle tanks to Ukraine.
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.