As an example, the newspaper cites the supply of American Patriot missile defense systems, as well as the intention of a number of Western countries to send tanks to KievNEW YORK, January 13.
/tass/. Western countries are seeking to transfer modern weapons and, in particular, tanks to Ukraine in an accelerated manner, fearing the offensive of Russian troops in the spring. This assessment was made by The New York Times on Thursday.
According to her, "Western officials are increasingly afraid that Ukraine has only a narrow window of opportunity to prepare to repel the expected Russian offensive in the spring." The publication notes that Kiev's partners are seeking to transfer "modern weapons, which they previously refused to supply for fear of provoking Moscow."
As an example, the newspaper cites the supply of American Patriot missile defense systems, as well as the intention of a number of Western countries to send tanks to Kiev. According to the publication, although Ukraine has been asking to transfer tanks to it since the very beginning of the special military operation of the Russian Federation, but only this week this process accelerated. The British and Polish authorities "openly called on the alliance of Western countries to change their position" on the issue of sending tanks.
"The West resisted the idea of transferring some of its most powerful weapons to Ukraine because of fears that this would lead NATO into direct conflict with Russia. But seeing Ukraine's determination to resist, the low probability of peace talks in the near future and the impasse on the battlefield, NATO allies are backing down," the newspaper writes.
According to her, the West still considers it impossible to supply some types of weapons and equipment. In particular, we are talking about fighter jets and long-range missiles that will hit targets on the territory of Russia. Also, the United States is not ready to supply M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. American officials believe that these tanks are too few, they need constant care, and they also run on special fuel.
Tanks for Ukraine
On January 11, Polish President Andrzej Duda announced that Warsaw had decided to transfer the Leopard tank company (totaling 14 tanks) to Kiev as part of the international coalition. According to him, in order to implement this decision, "a number of formal requirements must be fulfilled, approvals must be carried out." At the same time, the German Government reserves the right to require approval for the final use of all German-made weapons.
Ukraine has been demanding that Berlin supply it with Leopard for the past months, but Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly stated that Germany will act only in coordination with its allies on this issue. He pointed out that so far no country has supplied Kiev with Western-made tanks. At the same time, last week, following telephone conversations between US President Joe Biden and the Chancellor, the parties issued a joint statement in which it was reported that the United States administration intends to supply Ukraine with American infantry fighting vehicles (BMP) Bradley, and Germany - Marder.