Following Germany’s Leopard 2s, US approves sending 31 Abrams to Ukraine
DAMASCUS (North Press) – US President Joe Biden approved on Wednesday to send 31 M1 Abrams tanks to war-torn Ukraine whose president Volodymyr Zelenskyy had repeatedly asked the US to supply arms to his country.
“Secretary [Lloyd] Austin has recommended this step because it will enhance the Ukraine’s capacity to defend its territory and achieve its strategic objectives,” Biden said.
The US approval comes hours after Germany approved the transfer of German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allowed the 12 NATO countries that have Leopard 2s to send them to Ukraine.
“We remain united and determined as ever in our conviction and our cause,” Biden said at the White House.
However, while the war has been raging in eastern Ukraine recently, Biden noted that “delivering these tanks to the field is going to take time.”
In a first commentary made by Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian President told Sky News, “I would like to say thank you to Germany, to Britain and to the United States that they made this decision.”
“Overall I am very thankful to the world for the support for Ukraine. But speaking frankly, the number of tanks and the delivery time to Ukraine is critical,” the President noted.
On February 24, 2022, the world awoke to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Russian forces made advances in the first months on hostilities, but Ukrainians, upon receiving military aid, changed the situation on the ground re-taking large swaths from the Russian forces.