According to the AP, US officials said the goal is to deliver the 70-ton combat vehicles in 8-10 months. AP clarifies that initially, the plan was to build 31 tanks of the newer version, M1A2, for Ukraine. Now Washington wants to supply Kyiv with older M1A1s, which can be taken from the army’s stockpiles and are easier for the Ukrainian military to learn to operate.
However, it has not been reported how many M1A1 tanks Washington intends to supply to Kyiv. It is also unclear how long it will take to prepare the Ukrainian military to use these tanks, maintain their combat capability, and repair them.
In addition, the Pentagon must guarantee that Ukraine will receive adequate volumes of accompanying cargo to support the tank’s combat capability.