According to three sources familiar with the talks, the US plans to deliver Ukraine the Abrams main battle tank in its more sophisticated M1A2 form rather than the older A1 variant that the military has in storage.
However, the 31 tanks destined for Ukraine will not include the secret armor combination that makes the Army's newest version so dangerous, according to sources who spoke anonymously to disclose sensitive discussions.
US Abrams Tank
As per Politico, the A2 variant's optics and controls are more advanced than the previous A1 version, which the Army plans to retire over the next several years. Externally comparable to the A1, the A2 features a revamped commander's weapon station with enhanced aiming optics and a separate thermal viewer that enables the commander to search independently for targets in all weather and combat situations.
The inside has undergone the most significant remodeling to use new technology. The control systems are digitalized, most notably a new inter-vehicle information system that enables cars to continually and automatically communicate information. Using the new technology, commanders can quickly locate friendly vehicles, identify hostile locations, and handle artillery requests.
According to a fourth individual with knowledge of the subject, federal regulation prohibits the export of Abrams with classified armor packages used by the US military, which include depleted uranium.
Before exporting vehicles to foreign nations, the United States removed this "recipe" for secret armor. There are more armor packages that the United States can supply to international military sales clients. The Pentagon may be concerned about Russia seizing and reverse engineering the tanks. Australia, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia operate A1 models. However, none of them have depleted uranium armor.
The A2 version has more complex controls than the previous A1 version, with enhanced aiming optics and a separate thermal viewer that enables the commander to search for targets in all weather and combat situations independently. The A2's control systems have been improved and digitized, including a new "inter-vehicle information system" that enables commanders "more quickly track the whereabouts of friendly vehicles, detect enemy locations, and process artillery orders."
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Russia Warns West of Supplying Ukraine With Tanks
It is unclear how fast the United States will be able to construct the promised tanks for Ukraine, which has indicated an urgent need for them as Russia advances in the country's east.
The sole location where tanks are built is a government-owned, General Dynamics-operated factory in Ohio, according to The Telegraph. The plant can construct 12 tanks monthly, but fresh orders from Taiwan and Poland have filled the production line.
By arming Kyiv, the West is actively implicated in Russia's conflict in Ukraine, according to the Kremlin. This week, Berlin yielded to pressure from NATO allies by announcing that German-made Leopard 2 tanks may reach Ukraine by the end of March, while US president Joe Biden concurrently committed to send Abrams combat tanks.
Moscow's envoy to Germany warned that the action would escalate the situation to a "new level of confrontation." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said of Western weaponry supply, "In Moscow, this is viewed as direct engagement in the conflict, and this perception is developing."
Peskov also ridiculed Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky's remark that Vladimir Putin is a "nobody" who lives in an "information bubble" and with whom he has no desire to engage in peace negotiations, The Independent reported.
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