The US is finalizing plans to send nearly 100 Stryker combat vehicles to Kyiv, with an announcement expected at a meeting of Ukraine’s allies in Germany on Friday, officials said.
In addition to sending Strykers for the first time, Washington is also expected to announce that it will be sending at least 50 additional Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles. Officials warned the plans are not final.
As talks continue on further support for Ukraine, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met his new German counterpart Boris Pistorius on Friday ahead of talks between NATO defense ministers at the US Ramstein Air Base in western Germany.
The new US aid package comes as Washington and its partners recognize that Ukraine may have only a narrow window to launch a successful counterattack before Russia rearms and bolsters its exhausted military forces. The US this week began expanded combat training for Ukrainian forces in Germany.
Other governments have also pledged advanced weapons for Ukraine. Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said he would send an unspecified number of Archer self-propelled artillery systems, which have been at the top of Ukraine’s wish list for months.
Denmark donates 19 French-built Caesar self-propelled howitzers, which are also highly valued by the Ukrainian armed forces for their accuracy and mobility.
US officials see armaments, including modern main battle tanks, as crucial to Kiev’s ability to launch successful advanced combat operations in the coming months.
“To enable the Ukrainians to breach given Russian defenses, the focus has shifted to allowing them to combine fire and maneuver in a way that will prove more effective,” said Colin Kahl, the top political official at the Pentagon, who traveled to Ukraine last weekend.
The UK has committed to sending Challenger 2 main battle tanks and other countries, including Poland, have expressed interest in following suit.
Germany’s attitude is critical. Chancellor Olaf Scholz not only has the authority to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks from his country’s stocks, but he must also decide whether to allow 12 other nations across Europe to use the same German-built modern combat vehicles supposed to send theirs.
Berlin has made it clear it will not commit to sending Leopard 2s unless the US follows suit with its Abrams main battle tanks, which US officials say they are unwilling to do.
“I just don’t think we’re that far,” said Kahl. “The Abrams tank is a very complicated piece of equipment. It is expensive. It’s hard to train for. It has a jet engine.”
Dietmar Nietan, a member of Scholz’s SPD, hinted on Thursday that Berlin was on the verge of a tank announcement, saying in a Bundestag debate that “key decisions” would be made at Ramstein.
Nietan, a member of the Bundestag’s Foreign Affairs Committee, said Ukraine “must win this war that has been forced on it, for its own freedom and for ours,” adding: “And it will need additional main battle tanks for that.”
He continued: “Coordination with our allies is not trivial and takes time. But it is necessary.”
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Pistorius, who was appointed on Tuesday after his predecessor Christine Lambrecht resigned, promised Austin that Germany would continue to support Ukraine while standing “shoulder to shoulder” with the US – but without mentioning main battle tanks.
Instead, he cited the infantry fighting vehicles and Patriot air defense systems that the US and Germany planned to jointly send to Kyiv earlier this month. Air defenses remain critical as Russia continues to attack Ukraine’s infrastructure with missiles and drones.
Austin said Germany remains one of the US’ “key allies” in Europe and thanked the country for its support of Ukraine.