Germany and the US plan to provide Ukraine with modern battle tanks. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy sees this as a potential turning point in Ukraine’s efforts to resist Russia’s invasion, while Russia views it as a highly dangerous move.

After Germany announced plans to send Leopard 2 tanks, US President Joe Biden announced the decision to provide 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. Russia has warned that any Abrams tanks provided by the US will be “burnt” and has criticized the planned delivery as a costly mistake.

Germany has chosen to send the Leopard 2 tank, a widely-used NATO tank in Europe, to Ukraine instead of the more difficult-to-maintain M1 Abrams tank that was initially proposed by President Biden.

Germany and the US have broken a longstanding taboo by providing Ukraine with weapons that have primarily offensive capabilities, rather than defensive ones. Germany announced plans to supply Kiev with additional military equipment, including heavy artillery, air defense systems, and rocket launchers. Russia’s ambassador to Germany, Sergei Nechayev, strongly criticized this move, stating that “This extremely dangerous decision takes the conflict to a new level of confrontation.”

The ultimate objective is to supply Ukraine with two battalions of Leopard tanks, typically consisting of three to four companies each. The first batch is expected to arrive within three to four months.