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The brand new plan will convey the 70-ton tanks into motion “as rapidly as attainable,” the Pentagon mentioned
The US army will speed up its cargo of M1 Abrams battle tanks to Ukrainian forces, opting to ship an older mannequin after discovering that the newest model may take greater than a yr to achieve the battlefield.
Chatting with reporters for a press briefing on Tuesday, Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder mentioned that whereas the army initially deliberate to ship the tank’s newer M1A2 variant, it will now provide the earlier M1A1 mannequin as a way to “considerably expedite supply timelines.”
“It is going to … give Ukraine a really comparable functionality to the M1A2, which incorporates superior armor and weapons programs,” Ryder mentioned, stressing that the choice “is about getting this vital fight functionality into the palms of the Ukrainians sooner reasonably than later.”
Requested concerning the Pentagon’s authentic timetable for the Abrams, the spokesman mentioned deliveries have been first slated to take “over a yr,” however the army now hopes to begin shipments earlier than the tip of 2023.
The tanks can be outfitted with “refurbished” hulls taken from US inventories, Ryder added, happening to foretell that the price of the process wouldn’t go “very a lot past” $400 million.
Whereas President Joe Biden initially mentioned he wouldn’t authorize the Abrams for Ukraine, his administration reversed course earlier this yr after Germany agreed to ship its personal Leopard battle tanks, now pledging to switch 31 M1A1 fashions.
Ryder’s announcement got here simply someday after Washington unveiled its newest $350 million weapons bundle for Kiev, together with ammunition for US-made howitzers and the HIMARS multi-launch rocket platform, anti-armor programs, mortars and high-speed anti-radiation missiles (HARMs), amongst different gear. The brand new help introduced whole American army help to Ukraine to some $32.5 billion because the battle with Russia kicked off final yr.
Moscow has repeatedly urged in opposition to overseas arms shipments to Kiev, saying they might do nothing to discourage its army goals and solely make a negotiated settlement tougher. Earlier on Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin supplied a stern warning to the British authorities after it mentioned it will present depleted uranium munitions to Ukraine, saying Russia can be “pressured to react accordingly.” Requested if the US was at the moment supplying comparable DU weapons – which comprise extremely poisonous radioactive materials – Ryder mentioned “to not my information,” after officers beforehand declined to supply a solution and refused to debate the “technical specifics” of US arms.
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