[ad_1]
Ramstein Air Base, Germany (AP) — As the United States continues to accelerate its efforts to get the Abrams tanks onto the battlefield as soon as possible, it will begin training Ukrainian forces in the coming weeks on how to use and maintain the Abrams tanks. To do.US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Friday.
The decision comes as European and global defense leaders are meeting at Ramstein Air Base to coordinate the delivery of weapons and other equipment to Ukraine.
Officials said 31 tanks arrived at Germany’s Grafenwoehr Training Area at the end of May and the army is expected to begin training in the coming weeks. Officials said the unit’s training will last about 10 weeks.Training tanks were not given to Ukraine for use in war against RussiaInstead, 31 M1A1 tanks have been refurbished in the United States and ready to go to the front lines.
Meanwhile, Germany signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Poland and Ukraine to establish a maintenance base for the Leopard 2 tank fleet in Kiev in Poland near the Ukrainian border. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters he expected the hub to cost between €150 million and €200 million ($165 million to $220 million) annually.He said he expects it to start working around the end of next month.
The announcement came as ministers and representatives from about 50 countries gathered at a US-led meeting of the so-called Ukrainian Defense Liaison Group.
Speaking to reporters at the end of the conference, Austin said the delivery of training tanks in the coming weeks represents a “great progress”. “I am confident that with this equipment and the training that accompanies it, the Ukrainian Armed Forces will continue to be successful on the battlefield,” he added.
The US goal was to train the Ukrainian military by the time the modified Abrams tanks were ready and ready for combat. The tank is being re-equipped to meet Ukrainian needs.
US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Mark Milley added that he believed American tanks would be highly effective on the battlefield. “I think the M1 tank will make a difference,” he said, warning that “there are no silver bullets in war.”
About 250 Ukrainian troops have been trained, some learning to operate tanks, others to repair and maintain tanks, officials said. After his first 10 weeks, additional training on how to fight and operate a tank may also be provided.
So far, the United States has already trained 8,800 Ukrainian troops who have returned to the battlefield, and about 2,500 more are currently in training. Their training includes everything from basic weapons instruction, to how to conduct combat operations, to how to maintain and repair equipment.
In other comments, Austin dismissed questions about providing Ukraine with fighter jets, saying the United States was giving Ukraine a ground-based air defense capability, which it most needed.
Joe Biden administration announced in January that Abrams tanks would be sent to Ukraine — after months of claiming they were too complicated and too difficult to maintain and repairThe decision was part of a wider political maneuver in which Germany announced it would send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, allowing Poland and other allies to do the same.
Following heavy pressure from Ukraine and others to get tanks to Ukraine sooner, the Biden administration said last month that it would expedite deliveries of Abrams tanks to Ukraine, opting to send refurbished older models that could be ready sooner. bottom. The goal is for him to have a 70-ton combat powerhouse on the battlefield by the fall.
The U.S. has also revealed that it will begin training Ukrainian forces on how to use, maintain and repair tanks, and that the instructions will be consistent with tank upgrades, ensuring both are combat-ready at the same time. . Later this year.
At the same time, the Pentagon must ensure a proper supply chain of all the parts the Ukrainian military needs to keep its tanks operational.
Russian and Ukrainian militaries are largely in a stalemate, swapping small pieces of land over the winter.The heaviest fighting took place in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russia is struggling to besiege the city of Bakhmut. In the face of a stubborn Ukrainian defense. However, both sides are expected to launch more concentrated attacks in the spring.
The UK Defense Ministry said Friday in its Daily War Assessment that soft ground conditions and mud across much of Ukraine would likely delay operations on both sides.
In another development, Ukrainian Air Force commander Mykola Oreshuk said Friday he visited a US-made Patriot missile system deployed to the battlefield after its recent delivery.Ukrainian officials said Wednesday the Patriots had arrived.
The Ukrainian military said on Friday that Russia had launched an overnight attack on Ukraine with an Iranian-made self-exploding drone called the Shard. Russia has launched about 10 drones at Ukrainian targets, eight of which have been shot down by Ukrainian air defense systems, the Ukrainian General Staff said.
Ukraine’s presidential office reported Friday morning that at least six civilians have been killed and six others injured in the past 24 hours in Ukraine. Russian artillery and missile attacks mainly targeted cities and villages in the partially occupied regions of Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson, according to Ukrainian officials. Also attacked the Chernihiv province from mortars. Russia launched drones throughout the night, attacking not only Kiev, but also the Poltava and Vinnitsa regions.
___
Associated Press writer Hanna Arhirova contributed from Kiev, Ukraine. Geir Moulson contributed from Berlin and Yuras Karmananu from Tallinn, Estonia.
[ad_2]
Source link
