Bloomberg: US to send 31 Abrams tanks worth $400 million to Ukraine.
The U.S. is due to send 31 M1 Abrams tanks in a deal worth $400 million to Ukraine, Jordan Fabian, a Bloomberg journalist, said on Jan. 25.
He cited two officials familiar with the matter.
U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to give a speech on the topic at 7 p.m. Kyiv time on Jan. 25.
The Biden administration could announce a decision to send more than 30 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine on Jan. 25, although it could take months for them to be delivered, the Associated Press reported on Jan. 24, citing U.S. officials.
According to the AP, one U.S. official said the tanks would be bought under the upcoming Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative package, which provides funding for weapons and equipment to be purchased from commercial vendors.
Politico and the Wall Street Journal have also reported that the Biden administration was considering supplying Abrams tanks to Ukraine.
On Jan. 22, U.S. lawmakers called for giving Ukraine Abrams tanks to push Germany to authorize the delivery of German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine.
There have been media reports that Germany would allow the delivery of Leopard tanks to Ukraine if the U.S. supplied Abrams tanks to Kyiv. However, the German government has denied making such a demand.
Germany confirmed on Jan. 25 that it would send 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allow other countries, such as Poland, to send their own Leopards to Kyiv.
The long-awaited tanks will be delivered from the stocks of the German army, Chancellor Olaf Scholz told Bloomberg in an emailed statement.
“This decision follows our well-known line of supporting Ukraine to the best of our ability,” Scholz said, as quoted by Bloomberg. “We are acting in a way that is closely agreed and coordinated internationally.”
Previously the German government had been reluctant to approve Leopard 2 deliveries but eventually succumbed under pressure from the media and allies.
