The US and Germany have agreed to send Ukraine advanced battle tanks- Abrams and Leopards – to launch more offensives against Russia, both countries’ authorities revealed.
The U.S. is now poised to send its top-of-the-line battle tank, the M-1 Abrams, to Ukraine after insisting for months that the tanks were too complex to operate and maintain, U.S. officials said Tuesday.
However, officials said it would likely take months before Abrams tanks arrive in Ukraine. The U.S. is expected to send dozens of tanks, and Ukrainian crews must first be trained in both operations and maintenance. Once they’re operational, the tanks would give Ukraine major new capabilities to launch offensives against dug-in Russian troops.
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The news of the expected U.S. announcement, which could come as early as this week, came before Germany said Wednesday it would send 14 Leopards tank battle tanks to Ukraine, and approve re-export of the same kind of from partner countries like Poland.
“This decision follows our well-known line of supporting Ukraine to the best of our ability. We are acting in a closely coordinated and concerted manner internationally,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in Berlin.
Ukraine has been asking for Abrams tanks from the U.S. for months, but the Pentagon remained reluctant as recently as last week.
“We’re not there yet,” Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl said last Thursday when asked about fulfilling the request for the tanks.
“The Abrams tank is a very complicated piece of equipment. It’s expensive. It’s hard to train on … It is not the easiest system to maintain,” Kahl told reporters the day before.
Last week in Germany, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said allies are focused on getting Ukraine what it needs before the spring.
“So we have a window of opportunity here, you know, between now and the spring, whenever they commence their operation, their counteroffensive, and that’s not a long time, and we have to pull together the right capabilities,” Austin said.
In recent weeks, defense officials have emphasized the Abrams tank is not what Ukraine needs right now because of the significant maintenance it requires and the fact that it runs on jet fuel, not diesel like some other models of tanks. Despite its difficulty, the Abrams still would provide a significant capability for Ukraine to go on the offensive even if it’s in the medium to long term.
It’s unclear what prompted the U.S. to reverse its position on providing the Abrams tanks to Ukraine.
The U.S. has committed to training 500 Ukrainians per month on combined arms maneuvers, or how to move in battalion-sized groups and coordinate operations between air and ground. That large-scale training is in addition to specific training on complex weapons systems the U.S. has recently committed, like Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and Patriot air defense systems.
The U.S. has committed more than $26.7 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration.
Germany to deliver Leopard tanks
Germany’s tanks would probably be ready in three-four months, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said.
Training of Ukrainian troops in Germany will begin soon, and Germany will also provide logistics and ammunition. Germany said it would also issue the appropriate transfer permits to partner countries that want to deliver Leopard 2 tanks quickly from their own stocks.
Russia has portrayed deliveries of heavy weapons to Ukraine as proof that the West is escalating the war.
The Russian embassy to Berlin accused Germany of making an “extremely dangerous decision” and abandoning its “historical responsibility to Russia” arising from Nazi crimes in World War Two. The embassy said the tank deliveries would escalate the conflict to a new level and lead to “permanent escalation.”
The Leopards, used by armies across Europe, are widely seen as the best option for Ukraine as they are available in large numbers and relatively easy to deploy and maintain.
Washington may also drop its opposition to sending perhaps dozens of its M1 Abrams tanks to Kyiv. The Abrams is seen as less suitable for Ukraine due to its heavy fuel consumption and greater maintenance needs, but such a move could ease German concerns about presenting a united front among Ukraine’s allies.
Asked whether France would send Leclerc tanks, a French government official said there was “no taboo” on such tanks but France was keen to be “efficient” and was studying the option independently of what Berlin and Washington were doing.
Kyiv has pleaded for months for Western tanks, which it says will give its forces the firepower and mobility to break through Russian defensive lines and recapture occupied territory.
Britain and Poland welcomed Germany’s decision, which Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki described as “a big step towards stopping Russia.”
(Reuters)
