Ukrainian troops are training on German-made Leopard tanks in Poland and put on a demonstration Monday for Polish President Andrzej Duda that was attended by reporters.
The training for Leopard tanks typically takes a few months, but the program in Poland is being expedited and is expected to be completed in one month. Currently, 105 Ukrainian troops who were pulled from the frontlines in the Donbas are being trained by Polish, Canadian, and Norwegian instructors.
Germany is expected to deliver Ukraine’s first batch of Leopard tanks by April, while the US-made Abrams tanks could take years before they arrive for Ukrainian forces to use on the battlefield. Germany and Poland are sending Ukraine the Leopard 2, and Ukraine is also due to eventually receive the older Leopard 1 model depending on how many can be refurbished.
Duda hopes that the Leopards, combined with the British Challenger 2 tanks and four Leopard 2s Canada pledged, will give Ukraine about 65 tanks in the near future. NATO is rushing to deliver Ukraine more advanced weapons as Russia is making more gains in the battle around the Donetsk city of Bakhmut.
The New York Times reported on Monday that Ukraine has banned civilians and aid groups from Bakhmut. The report said the move could be a prelude to a Ukrainian withdrawal from the Bakhmut, a city Ukraine has taken very heavy losses defending.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Monday that it appeared Russia has started its long-awaited major offensive. Since mobilizing 300,000 fresh troops, Russia has reinforced its positions and built up its forces, and Ukrainian officials have been warning a new Russian push is coming.
We should get a global go fund me account to buy Putin couple more yachts and vacation islands. Maybe have neighboring countries donate few miles worth of acres of land. That may persuade Putin to withdraw from Ukraine.
Nobody wants Putin’s new offensive of 20 million soldiers with unlimited supplies and weapons, that might be really bad for the North, East, West and South.
65 future hunks of junk.
Which ensures that they’ll need to be replaced pretty pronto which requires taking on more debt.
Times are good for the global MIC’s…..not for those who once harbored hopes that public funds should really be invested on improving infrastructure projects.
All of which may leave NATO nations’ militaries a bit bereft of equipment while also risking a nuclear confrontation.
I’m sure that two small battalions of tanks can be useful in a war. I am also sure that is a small force, and the fuss made over providing it is about politics and grandstanding, not reality.
“The training for Leopard tanks typically takes a few months, but the program in Poland is being expedited and is expected to be completed in one month.”
It either takes a few months or it doesn’t. If it can be completed in one month, it should be able to be completed in one month under any circumstances. You can’t add hours to a day. Expedited = half assed.
Come on man, didn’t you serve?
For a tank: drive, shoot, maneuver, communicate, basic maintenance.
There’s always abbreviated/accelerated training evolutions for any weapon systems but if you aren’t going to use it and integrate with other systems, then you eliminate certain phases of training.
I can teach a normal person how to shoot a rifle in one day and just focus on the important things you need to know to employ it… or I can take 3 weeks and teach you every aspect of the rifle, basic maintenance and marksmanship skills etc.
Many of these guys are existing tank crew members. They understand the principles.
Escalate and escalate. How many more will die? Start negotiating for peace!
Poland has been de facto at war with Russia for many years now.
The sooner Russia wakes up to the fact and responds accordingly with its FULL MILITARY STRENGTH – the better.