US delivers all promised Abrams tanks to Ukraine
Ukraine received 31 American-made M1A1 Abrams tanks, which US President Joe Biden promised to hand over to the military.
The representative of the US Army in Europe and Africa, Colonel Martin O'Donnell, said this to the Voice of America.
"All Ukrainians who trained on tanks together with American troops in Germany also returned to Ukraine with ammunition and spare parts for tanks," he said.
However, O'Donnell noted that it would take some time for Abrams to get directly to the battlefield. He said, "Ukrainian troops should ensure they have the necessary support elements and decide when and where to use tanks to achieve maximum effect against Russian troops."
"I think that Ukraine will be careful when and where it will use American tanks," he stressed.
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It should be noted that the USA promised to transfer 31 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. Initially, Washington announced the transfer of the M1A2 version, but later, due to long delivery times, they wanted to provide the M1A1 version.
The United States has removed some secret technology from the Abrams tanks it plans to send to Ukraine because it fears they could fall into the hands of the Russian army on the battlefield.
The Pentagon announced back in March that they wanted to complete the transfer of tanks by the fall of 2023. More precise delivery dates were unknown.
On Monday, May 15, the US Department of Defense confirmed the arrival of 31 Abrams tanks in Germany to train Ukrainian crews.
Earlier, the former Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Oleksiy Reznikov, noted that American tanks would not participate in this counteroffensive of the Armed Forces.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, said that the American Abrams tanks, promised to be handed over to the United States, can already participate in this counteroffensive.
