{"id":64018,"date":"2023-01-18T21:58:33","date_gmt":"2023-01-18T21:58:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2023\/01\/18\/the-west-doubles-down-on-aiding-ukraine-with-heavy-weapons\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T00:49:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T00:49:37","slug":"the-west-doubles-down-on-aiding-ukraine-with-heavy-weapons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/pentagon\/2023\/01\/18\/the-west-doubles-down-on-aiding-ukraine-with-heavy-weapons\/","title":{"rendered":"The West doubles down on aiding Ukraine with heavy weapons"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WASHINGTON \u2015 Weeks before the first anniversary of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/flashpoints\/ukraine\/\" target=\"_blank\">Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine<\/a>, Western officials agreed to send a flurry of offensive armored vehicles to Ukraine\u2019s battlefields that they previously refused to deliver for fear of provoking Russia \u2014 heralding a new phase of international support for Kyiv.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Plans to send yet heavier equipment designed to win maneuver battles are expected to come to a head this week, as defense leaders huddle in Ramstein, Germany, on Friday to discuss the war and pledge new contributions. They follow Western assessments that the fighting has become a virtual stalemate and that Ukraine will need intensified backing to punch through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Pentagon\u2019s undersecretary for policy, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/congress\/2022\/11\/10\/biden-ukraine-aid-will-keep-flowing-even-through-a-gop-led-house\/\" target=\"_blank\">Colin Kahl<\/a>, told reporters Wednesday that because Russian forces have dug in and fortified their forward line, the U.S. and other allies feel spurred to pledge infantry fighting vehicles and other mechanized capabilities. Ukraine can either change the battlefield dynamics of the fighting will continue on as \u201cgrinding slog,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Russians are really digging in. They\u2019re digging trenches, they\u2019re putting in these dragon\u2019s teeth, laying mines. They\u2019re really trying to fortify that that FLOT, that forward line of troops,\u201d Kahl said. \u201cTo enable the Ukrainians to break through given Russian defenses, the emphasis has been shifted to enabling them to combine fire and maneuver in a way that will prove to be more effective.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ahead of Defense Secretary <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/pentagon\/2022\/05\/03\/austin-pledges-to-restock-us-ammo-sent-to-ukraine\/\" target=\"_blank\">Lloyd Austin<\/a>\u2019s meetings with German officials on Thursday and other allies at Ramstein, Kahl said the U.S. is considering American-made M1 Abrams tanks and Stryker armored fighting vehicles. But for now, Washington is still disqualifying the Abrams for Ukraine because of its fuel, maintenance and training needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Abrams tank is a very complicated piece of equipment,\u201d Kahl said. \u201cIt\u2019s expensive, it\u2019s hard to train on, it has a jet engine. I think it gets about 3 gallons to the mile of jet fuel. It is not the easiest system to maintain. It may or may not be the right system, but we\u2019ll continue to look at what makes sense.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOne of the things that Secretary [Lloyd] Austin has been very focused on is that we should not be providing the Ukrainians systems they can\u2019t repair, they can\u2019t sustain, and they and that they over the long term can\u2019t afford, because it\u2019s not helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This month, after France pledged to send AMX-10 RC armored reconnaissance vehicles, sometimes called \u201clight tanks,\u201d the U.S. pledged to send 50 M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles as part of its<a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/pentagon\/2023\/01\/06\/us-to-send-ukraine-largest-package-yet-worth-375-billion\/\" target=\"_blank\"> largest Ukraine aid package yet<\/a>, and Germany pledged 40 Marder fighting vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meanwhile, the U.K. became the first country to commit to sending Western-made tanks to Ukraine with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/global\/europe\/2023\/01\/12\/britain-to-give-ukraine-heavy-tanks-as-german-leos-are-on-hold\/\" target=\"_blank\">pledge of 14 Challenger 2 platforms<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Poland and Finland have offered to send German-built Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, subject to approval by Germany. Roughly a dozen countries operate the Leopard and have the potential to add to the supply. But Germany, like the U.S., has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/opinion\/commentary\/2023\/01\/17\/world-leaders-should-press-switzerland-on-arms-deliveries-to-ukraine\/\" target=\"_blank\">held back<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Analysts were describing a change in Germany\u2019s tone as the week progressed, predicting that the government, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/global\/europe\/2023\/01\/17\/germany-to-appoint-regional-official-as-defense-minister\/\" target=\"_blank\">a fresh defense minister in place<\/a> as of Thursday, might use the Ukraine donor group forum at Ramstein Air Base on Jan. 20 to announce tank aid \u2014 either involving the newer generation or older Leopard 1 types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported Tuesday that manufacturers could provide 10-15 refurbished Leopard 2s in 2023, information that the paper said was confirmed with defense industry executives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Armin Papperger, chief executive of Rheinmetall, which makes the tank in conjunction with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, had said days earlier that getting the newer-generation tanks war-ready from storage would take until 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But speaking to delegates at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, German Chancellor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/global\/europe\/2023\/01\/17\/germany-to-appoint-regional-official-as-defense-minister\/\" target=\"_blank\">Olaf Scholz <\/a>resisted the mounting international pressure and said Berlin would not take steps without Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Also at Davos, Ukrainian President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/congress\/2022\/05\/19\/here-are-the-high-end-weapons-zelenskyy-hopes-the-new-ukraine-aid-bill-will-provide\/\" target=\"_blank\">Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/a> made a personal appeal for Western tanks, saying they must arrive ahead of any Russian mobilization drive. Ukrainian officials have been warning they expect Moscow to call up more conscripts in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe supplying of Ukraine with air defense systems must outpace Russia\u2019s next missile attacks. The supplies of Western tanks must outpace another invasion of Russian tanks,\u201d he told delegates to Davos via teleconference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Speaking afterward, Polish President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/global\/europe\/2023\/01\/10\/poland-in-talks-with-allies-over-leopard-2-transfers-to-ukraine\/\" target=\"_blank\">Andrzej Duda<\/a> said he fears Russia is preparing to launch a new offensive in Ukraine within months, and that it is time to provide Kyiv with modern tanks and missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThey [Russian forces] are still very strong, and we are afraid they are preparing for a new offensive in a few months, so it\u2019s crucial to send additional support to Ukraine, specifically modern tanks and modern missiles,\u201d Duda said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The U.K.\u2019s new aid package of 14 Challenger 2 tanks would also includes 30 AS90 self-propelled artillery weapons, Bulldog armored personnel carriers, minefield breaching and bridging capabilities, \u201cdozens\u201d of drones, another 100,000 artillery rounds, more Starstreak air defenses, and precision rockets for the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System \u2015 as well as associated training for Ukrainian forces<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe think now is the right time to intensify our support for Ukraine,\u201d Britain\u2019s foreign secretary, James Cleverly, said Tuesday while visiting Washington. \u201cWe can\u2019t allow this to drag on and become a kind of First World War attritional-type stalemate.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Plans to send yet heavier equipment designed to win maneuver battles are expected to come to a 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