US M1A1 Abrams tanks will arrive in Germany in May, according to senior military officials. Also in Germany, the Ukrainian army will undergo a 10-week training course on these combat vehicles.
It is expected that 31 tanks will arrive at the Grafenwöhr base in the first batch.
Additional training and maintenance courses will take place either at Grafenwöhr or at another base in Hohenfels. This was said by Pentagon officials on condition of anonymity.
About 250 Ukrainian soldiers will learn to operate the Abrams. In the fall, the United States will be ready to send tanks to Ukraine, much earlier than originally planned.
The training tanks from the Grafenwöhr base will remain in Germany. According to Pentagon sources, the United States is currently in the process of repairing and preparing the operation of these tanks which will be delivered to Ukraine, and they will go to the front line as soon as they are ready.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is expected to officially announce it at a press conference on Friday, after the end of the regular meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. . Military personnel from 50 countries take part, discussing the needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces for armored vehicles, air defense and ammunition.
Opening the meeting, the Pentagon chief noted that Ukraine’s allies have already provided over $55 billion in security assistance to Ukraine. According to Austin, over the past few months, members of the “Ramstein Group” have supplied Ukraine with equipment and trained the Ukrainian army to form 9 armored brigades.
Abrams tanks are expected to play an important role in Ukraine’s military support. Its reinforced armor and 1,500 horsepower gas turbine engine make it far more advanced than the old Soviet tanks that Ukraine has been using since the start of the war.
In January, the Biden administration announced it would send a newer version of the Abrams tanks, known as the M1A2, to Ukraine after they were purchased and produced, but the process could take years. Therefore, in March, the White House decided to supply Ukraine with an earlier modification of the Abrams – M1A1 tanks in order to transfer them “into Ukrainian hands as soon as possible”, the Pentagon spokesman said, Brigadier General Pat Ryder.
The United States has now provided more than $35 billion in military aid to Ukraine since the Russian invasion began. Some countries, including Estonia and Latvia, have donated more than 1% of their GDP to the defense of Ukraine.
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