The Pentagon is scrambling to send reconditioned US Abrams tanks to the Ukraine battleground within eight to 10 months, according to US officials.
Building and transporting 31 of the more advanced M1A2 Abrams tanks to Ukraine was originally scheduled to take place over a year or more, according to ABC News. But authorities decided to send the earlier M1A1 model, which may be withdrawn from Army supplies and arrive by the end of 2023.
Ukraine's armed forces will have an easier time learning how to handle and maintain the M1A1, according to officials.
Since the strategy hasn't been made public yet, the officials talked on Tuesday on the condition of anonymity. The announcement of the US Abrams tanks delivery is anticipated to come Tuesday from Military officials.
In January, the Biden administration announced they would ship the US Abrams tanks to Ukraine. The decision was part of a larger political strategy that allowed Germany to say it would deploy its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and enable Poland and other partners to follow suit.
Though, the US Abrams tank training schedule for Ukrainian soldiers is uncertain.
The US Abrams tanks are unlikely to be delivered until the spring, far after both Russia and Ukraine are certain to increase the intensity of their offensives, per an AP News report.
During the winter, the two sides traded relatively modest areas of territory and remained basically at a standstill.
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US Calls on Xi Jinping To Urge Vladimir Putin To Halt War Crimes in Ukraine
Meanwhile, White House National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to pull troops out of Ukraine.
The White House official has said that a peace treaty alone is not the solution to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Kirby remarked that the US hopes that Xi Jinping "will press" Vladimir Putin to stop the bombing of cities, schools, and hospitals, and "to halt the war crimes and atrocities, and to withdraw his troops" from Ukraine, per the BBC.
Kirby also expressed concerns that China's peace plan might keep Russian soldiers within Ukraine's sovereign territory.
"Any ceasefire that does not address the removal of Russian forces from Ukraine would effectively ratify Russia's illegal conquests," Kirby said.
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