Russia called it an 'extremely dangerous' move for Germany and the US to send battle tanks to Ukraine.
Several modern battle tanks will be delivered to Ukraine by Germany and the US. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the action as a possible turning point in the country's struggle to fend off Russia's invasion, while the Kremlin called it an "extremely dangerous" move.
Hours after Germany announced the deployment of Leopard 2 tanks, US President Joe Biden announced the decision to supply 31 M1 Abrams tanks. Russia has declared that any Abrams battle tank delivered by the US to Ukraine will "burn up", calling the anticipated delivery an expensive folly.
The Leopard 2 tank, the workhorse of NATO troops across Europe, was Germany's choice to send to Ukraine, replacing a careful deployment of the difficult-to-maintain Abrams at Biden's debut.
One of the few remaining taboos in Western aid to Ukraine has finally been broken by Germany and the US: delivering weapons with a primary offensive rather than defensive purpose. Germany announced that it would deploy further military supplies to Kyiv, including heavy artillery, air defense and several rocket launchers.
Moscow's ambassador to Germany, Sergei Nechayev, expressed anger at Berlin's announcement, saying, "This extremely dangerous decision takes the conflict to a new level of confrontation."
The ultimate goal would be to provide Ukraine with two Leopard battalions, usually made up of three or four companies, the first of which would arrive in three to four months.
While the Abrams and Leopard are quite similar, the main difference is the engine. While the Abrams featured a more powerful and complex turbine engine, the Leopard 2 featured a diesel-powered MTU MB 873 engine that was much easier to maintain and more popular in Europe.
Ukraine, according to some experts, may find it difficult to manage the logistics infrastructure for Abrams tanks, given how often they are deployed to Europe. Additionally, a four-person tank would require additional training for sophisticated equipment.
With statements from Poland, Finland and Norway this week, pledges from other NATO allies to field leopards, which Germany produces in numbers and exports to allies, increased significantly.
Zelensky has asked allies to rapidly supply a number of tanks in significant quantities. "The key now is speed and quantity. Speed in training our forces, speed in supplying tanks to Ukraine. Numbers in tank support," he said on 25 January.
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