Ukraine's New M-1 Abrams Tanks Have Arrived Too Late
The tank war is already over
Nine months after pledging 49 surplus M-1A1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine’s war efforts, the first batch of the American-made tanks has arrived by sea and rail in Ukraine.
Imagery the Australian defense ministry posted online on Saturday depict the 69-ton, 2000s-vintage tanks loading onto a ship. Separate imagery depicts some of the heavy combat vehicles on train cars, apparently bound for Ukraine after landing in Germany.
The tanks are a welcome addition to Ukraine’s arsenal. The country’s first consignment of 31 M-1A1s, pledged by the United States in 2023, is running low after Russian forces destroyed, captured or damaged no fewer than 22 of the vehicles.
Forty-nine fresh M-1s, supplemented by the survivors of the 31 U.S.-donated tanks, should be enough for two battalions, which would notionally possess 31 tanks apiece. But the Aussie Abrams, which are being replaced in the Australian army by a new model of the classic tank, are arriving at a tumultuous time for Ukraine’s armor corps.