After the federal government, the White House is following suit: the USA will also supply battle tanks to Ukraine.
Just hours after the German pledge of Leopard tanks for Kyiv, the US government announced that it would deliver 31 M1 Abrams main battle tanks to Ukraine. This was announced by US President Joe Biden in Washington on Wednesday. The 31 tanks correspond to the equipment of a Ukrainian tank battalion. The Ukrainian armed forces will soon be trained in the use and maintenance of the US tank.
The US government is ordering the tanks from the industry, which is why it was still unclear when they would arrive in Ukraine. “We’re talking months, not weeks,” said a senior US government official. The announcement of the delivery on the same day as that from Berlin demonstrates that “the United States and Europe continue to work together to support Ukraine,” she said. Washington very much appreciates Germany’s commitment to the Leopard tanks for Kyiv. “It’s really remarkable when you look back at the extraordinary changes in German security policy over the past twelve months,” she said. “Almost a year after the beginning of the war, this is an impressive signal of unity.”
US government officials did not specify which exact model of M1 Abrams tanks Ukraine will receive. They also initially did not want to give any details about the delivery of the associated ammunition. In any case, the scope of delivery would also include armored recovery vehicles of the type M88. It is about ensuring that the Ukrainian armed forces can use the tanks independently in the long term, it said. The Abrams tanks are a technically complex weapon system, which is why they pose a greater challenge to Ukraine than some other systems. “It’s the best tank in the world, but it’s also the most sophisticated,” the senior US official said in a telephone briefing for reporters.
