According to The Washington Post, Washington and Berlin could not reach a compromise on the transfer of cars for a long timeWASHINGTON, January 29.
/tass/. The US announcement of its intention to transfer American Abrams tanks to Ukraine was the result of a compromise between Washington and Berlin and, in fact, a cover allowing Germany to immediately begin supplying German Leopard 2 tanks to Kiev, while sending American armored vehicles to Ukraine is scheduled for a later date. This interpretation of the latest agreements between Washington and Berlin is given on Saturday by The Washington Post.
According to the publication, referring to conversations with more than 10 current and former officials, as well as people familiar with the discussions, Washington and Berlin have not been able to reach a compromise on the issue of sending tanks to Kiev for a long time. The United States sought permission from Germany to transfer German-made Leopard 2 tanks, which were available both in Germany itself and in the arsenals of other US allies, who also needed Berlin's permission to re-export them.
Washington wanted the German-made tanks to be transferred to Kiev, because the Pentagon believed that it would be easier for the Ukrainian military to learn how to use them due to the simplicity of the design compared to the American Abrams tanks. It was noted that there is a sufficient number of spare parts for them. In general, according to the newspaper, there are now about 2 thousand such tanks in the arsenal of Germany and other countries.
However, Berlin insisted on linking the Leopard 2 shipment with the transfer of American Abrams to Kiev. According to the publication, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was concerned about the potential retaliatory actions of Moscow if Berlin takes this step unilaterally. In addition, he did not want Germany to be perceived as a direct participant in the conflict.
Washington, however, was in no hurry to agree to send Abrams tanks. According to one of the Pentagon representatives, who spoke on condition of anonymity, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin believed that it would be "impossible" for Ukrainians to use and maintain these tanks in the near future due to the fact that they are too complex and very long training is required to handle them.
According to another representative of the US military, since these tanks are equipped with classified armor elements, including depleted uranium, as standard equipment used by the US military, there were concerns that these technologies could eventually fall into the hands of Moscow. In this regard, the Pentagon resisted to the last the idea of sending Abrams to Ukraine.
According to the publication, a way out of the impasse was found by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. He suggested that Washington could promise to send American Abrams tanks to Ukraine, but not right now, but later - as part of ensuring Kiev's "long-term" needs for the coming years. This would give the Pentagon time to train the Ukrainian military, thereby removing Austin's main objection. At the same time, Washington's very announcement of its intention to supply Kiev with American tanks would give Berlin the necessary "cover" in order to start supplying Kiev with its Leopard tanks right now.
It was this compromise option, according to the publication, that Blinken proposed to President Joe Biden after his next conversation with the German Chancellor, during which Scholz continued to insist on sending American tanks.
On January 25, the US authorities announced their intention to transfer 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Kiev. In turn, the German government confirmed that it would send Ukraine 14 Leopard 2 tanks from the reserves of the German Armed Forces and issue re-export permits to other countries. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that Leopard 2 tanks will be sent to Ukraine "by the end of March." The intentions to transfer tanks to Kiev on January 25 were announced by the defense departments of Norway and Slovakia, and earlier the decision to provide tanks to Ukraine was also reported by the authorities of Great Britain, Poland and France.
According to John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications at the White House National Security Council, German Leopard tanks will arrive in Ukraine in a fairly short time, while the delivery of American Abrams "will take much more months."
Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh stated that the United States does not have additional Abrams tanks of the necessary M1A2 modification to send them to Ukraine and they will need to be purchased from manufacturers. According to her, this process will take several months.
The Politico newspaper, citing sources, reported that the US authorities intend to supply Ukraine with an improved modification of the Abrams M1A2 tanks, however, in its export version, which does not include secret armor sets with depleted uranium used by the US military itself.
The US authorities have repeatedly pointed out the difficulties with the delivery of Abrams tanks, providing them with fuel, repair and support, as well as the need for long-term training of Ukrainian soldiers to manage them.
