America’s top military officer said the Pentagon will ship 31 Abrams Tanks to Europe next month. Once in Germany, Ukrainian soldiers will train on the weapons platform until the tanks and troops are deployed to the battlefield.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, made the announcement while meeting with NATO partners in Germany. Milley said the tanks were not a silver bullet, but he believes "when it’s delivered and it reaches its operational capability, [it] will be very effective on the battlefield."
The White House authorized sending Abrams Tanks to Ukraine in January. Initially, the US planned to purchase new tanks for Kiev. However, last month, the Pentagon announced that it had accelerated the timetable for providing the main battle tanks. In order to accommodate the shorter timeline, the Department of Defense planned to refurbish and transfer tanks already in the American stockpile.
For nearly a year after the Russian invasion, the Joe Biden administration refused Kiev’s request for the provision of Western-made tanks. The White House authorized the transfer of Abrams Tanks to increase the pressure on Berlin to allow the German-made Leopard-2 tanks to be transferred to Ukraine.
The scheme worked and resulted in Berlin sending 14 of its Leopard 2 tanks to Kiev. Additionally, the German government has allowed several other European states to send their Leopards to Ukraine.
On Friday, NATO defense ministers announced the alliance would create a hub to repair Leopard tanks in Poland near the border with Ukraine. Member states pledged about $220 million in funding for the facility this year.
Milley said 200-300 Ukrainian troops will travel to Germany to train on the Abrams tanks in a ten-week course. Milley added that the US had already trained 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers and was in the process of getting 2,500 more troops prepared for battle.
Kyle Anzalone is the opinion editor of Antiwar.com, news editor of the Libertarian Institute, and co-host of Conflicts of Interest.
Does the word ESCALATING resonate with anyone???
No, but my ears are ringing.
Why are your ears ringing?… Ah, I see…;-)
Biden wants to wear down Russia. That means that he must keep Ukraine fighting for as long as possible. He doesn’t want to send enough military aid to allow Ukraine to “win” because that would end the fighting. But he doesn’t want to send too little, because that would 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 end the fighting.
Thanks Duane. I appreciate your time and your response but let me ask you a question… Do you think this situation could possibly escalate?…
Yes. Indeed, that has already happened a few times. The bombing of the Kerch Bridge, for example, was answered with missiles striking the electrical grid. Tanks will be answered with traps, artillery, robots, and aircraft.
I don’t think it likely that Russia will attack areas outside of Ukraine because of tanks. But I wouldn’t put it past Biden to escalate with something even more powerful if he sees that Russia can handle the tanks. So, if Biden has enough time to do so, he could escalate to such an extent that the war would expand to other countries.
My original response is below this one.
However, Scott Ritter just released a video that looks at this question. You can see it here: https://youtu.be/Jvv5ijLNOo0
The policy in Wash. is to MAKE the situation escalate by provoking Russia and China to fire the first shot so Wash. has an excuse to start WWIII.
Best analysis yet! It’s all about MONEY!
Initially, the US planned to purchase new tanks for Kiev
of course uncle sam did. and not one thought towards education of or food supplies for american children
Lets shine a little more light on the war profiteers
Kudos for Lee Camp.
One of my favs, truly!
He’s brilliant
He was regularly on RT just like Disqus however all that’s changed – you can find him on Mintpress.
“Milley said 200-300 Ukrainian troops will travel to Germany to train on
the Abrams tanks in a ten-week course. Milley added that the US had
already trained 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers and was in the process of
getting 2,500 more troops prepared for battle.”
So 34,300 more coffins to fill at the expense of the Ukrainian men.
America is sick and sad to keep up the killing without any diplomatic efforts. The United States Department of State is running military policy with ignorant clowns like Blinken and Victoria Nuland who are clueless in military matters.
The United States Department of State is suppose to be about big picture American policy using diplomacy and the Department of Defense is suppose to be about “diplomacy by other means” i.e. WAR!
Schizophrenic and senile about sums up America today.
Yes, Mme. Nuland & co. aside, the pressure from General Dynamics for profit and share value is interminable and sublimely indifferent.
And of course, whatever the USA says, Europe does.🙄
Here’s a look at Russia’s answer to the tanks we are sending into Ukraine. They are difficult to detect because of their size. They can be effective while outside the range of a typical tank. They work in packs. Their dual stage anti-tank missiles will defeat active armor. They can operate autonomously if the communications link is broken. And they cost far less to build than a conventional tank.
Some are already in the Donbass. But they are so new, they haven’t been tested in battle, and it isn’t obvious that Russia can field these in large numbers.
https://www.thedefensepost.com/2023/02/01/russia-tank-killing-robots/
What a $ racket such as this….is