Britain pledged on Saturday to send tanks to Ukraine as its capital fell victim to missile attacks again and the ground war continued in Ukraine’s Donbas region.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he would send Ukraine Challenger 2 tanks along with additional artillery systems following a call on Saturday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The war has escalated once again and both Russia and Ukraine are looking to bolster their forces and take control of the battlefield in Donbas, where heavy fighting continues along a 50-mile axis from Bakhmut and Soledar in Donetsk to Kremmina. in Luhansk.
BULFORD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 24: Challenger 2 main battle tanks are on display for families watching the Royal Tank Regiment Parade, on September 24, 2022 in Bulford, England.
(Photo by Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)
RUSSIA AGAIN CLAIMS VICTORY OVER THE UKRAINIAN CITY OF SOLEDAR, IN A RARE POSSIBLE VICTORY
According to a reading of the call, the British government said leaders “agreed on the need to seize this moment with an acceleration of global military and diplomatic support for Ukraine.”
Zelenskyy has long urged the Western allies to send their troops to the tanks on the eastern front, but in recent weeks those calls have been amplified and friendly nations such as France and Poland have begun to respond to the calls.
Earlier this month, Paris pledged to send AMX-10 RC light tanks and Warsaw said this week it would send its German-made Leopard tanks to the war-torn nation.
Polish President Andrzej Duda also said on Wednesday that he was in talks with allied nations to send additional tanks, but did not specify which nations he was referring to.
The United States has not yet committed to sending tanks, although the Biden administration will send Bradley fighting vehicles that it argues will prove valuable on the fluid front line.
TOPSHOT – A Ukrainian tank fires on Russian positions near Kreminna, Lugansk region, on January 12, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
(Photo by ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP via Getty Images)
US COMMITS $3B IN LARGEST DEFENSIVE PACKAGE TO UKRAINE YET TO CHANGE ‘BATTLEFIELD DYNAMICS’
In a $3 billion withdrawal package announced last week, the US pledged to send 50 Bradley Fighting Vehicles, 100 Armored Personnel Carriers, 55 Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles and 138 Defense Vehicles. high mobility multipurpose wheels.
The main differences between the Bradley Fighting Vehicle and the US M1 Abrams tank is its lighter armor and gun capacity.
Although tanks have heavier armor and longer-range firepower, they also carry fewer troops on the battlefield and are more difficult to maneuver.
Germany also said last week it would send Ukraine 40 combat vehicles and a Patriot air defense missile system, a sophisticated battery capable of shooting down ballistic missiles.
The United States has also pledged to train Ukrainian soldiers in the Patriot system and will also send one of its own batteries to Kyiv.
A Ukrainian serviceman holds a homemade trench candle to light and heat makeshift shelters, sitting on a tank at the front lines near Kreminna, Lugansk region, on January 12, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
(Photo by ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
It is unclear how quickly the UK, France or Poland can get tanks to the Ukraine front, but Washington said it would take a few months to get its vehicles to Ukraine and train its fighters on US systems.
The British prime minister told Zelenskyy that he and his government would work “intensively” to ensure that defensive aid promised by international partners is delivered “quickly” to “allow Ukraine to play its advantage, win this war and secure lasting peace.” .
