Ukraine’s military rebuffed a recent report that it had pulled US M1A1 Abrams tanks from the front lines because too many were being blown up by Russian drones.
“The tanks are doing a great job on the battlefield, and we are definitely not going to hide from the enemy what makes them hide,” Ukraine’s 47th Separate Mechanized Brigade, which operates the armored vehicles, wrote on Telegram.
“And even more so — to leave our infantry without such powerful fire support.”
On Thursday, a pair of US military officials told The AP that Kyiv had sidelined dozens of the Abrams — which are the American military’s main battle tank — amid concerns that they can be too easily tracked and targeted by Russian drones.
At least five of the 31 tanks were badly damaged in a matter of weeks, US officials told the AP.
Ukraine pushed heavily for the United States to send it the tanks to help break through Russian lines, but by the time they arrived in Sept. 2023, the battlefield had changed significantly, the outlet reported.
Russia’s use of surveillance drones and hunter-killer drones in particular have increased the ability to detect the vehicles and made them more difficult to protect, the outlet said.
This week, the Biden administration signed off on a slew of military aid packages to the nation’s embattled ally.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin revealed Friday at a Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting that the US is shipping Kyiv $6 billion worth of military aid, inclduing Patriot missile defense systems and counter-artillery radar.
News of the massive aid package — the largest to date — came just two days after President Biden green lit a separate, $1 billion tranche for military equipment.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan revealed this week that Biden administration also had quietly sent Ukraine in March long-range missile systems that could hit Russia well behind its front lines, despite claiming there were no funds to do so.
The Associated Press did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
