{"id":541121,"date":"2023-01-20T02:02:11","date_gmt":"2023-01-19T23:02:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/how-us-german-bickering-is-blocking-ukraines-push-for-tanks\/"},"modified":"2023-01-20T02:02:11","modified_gmt":"2023-01-19T23:02:11","slug":"how-us-german-bickering-is-blocking-ukraines-push-for-tanks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-us-german-bickering-is-blocking-ukraines-push-for-tanks\/","title":{"rendered":"#How US-German \u2018bickering\u2019 is blocking Ukraine\u2019s push for tanks"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2a7ab351219\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2a7ab351219\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-us-german-bickering-is-blocking-ukraines-push-for-tanks\/#How_US-German_%E2%80%98bickering_is_blocking_Ukraines_push_for_tanks\" >How US-German \u2018bickering\u2019 is blocking Ukraine\u2019s push for tanks<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_US-German_%E2%80%98bickering_is_blocking_Ukraines_push_for_tanks\"><\/span>How US-German \u2018bickering\u2019 is blocking Ukraine\u2019s push for tanks<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/01\/abrams-tank_102119ap-mindaugas-kulbis_ukraine-tanks.jpeg?w=900\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>A push to provide battle tanks to Ukraine is stalled after U.S. officials this week expressed reluctance over difficulties in maintenance and training for the advanced tracked vehicle.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. decision effectively prevents Ukraine getting tanks from other NATO allies as well, as Germany this week made clear it would only allow other countries to send the German-made tanks if the U.S. commits its own M1 Abrams tank first.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr1_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>Ukraine has repeatedly asked for Western tanks to help in its fight with Russia, a topic that was front and center this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and will again be in the spotlight at a gathering of top defense ministers for a\u00a0Ukraine Contact Group meeting\u00a0on Friday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>German officials have been mulling allowing Ukraine to have its Leopard 2 tanks, with speculation that the U.S. and Germany may announce a deal on Friday to finally grant Kyiv\u2019s wish for heavy tanks.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But the United States believes \u201cit just doesn\u2019t make sense\u201d for Washington to send over the Army\u2019s main battle tank now, Sabrina Singh, deputy Pentagon press secretary, told reporters Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s more of a sustainment issue,\u201d Singh said. \u201cThis is a tank that requires jet fuel. . . .. The maintenance and the high cost that it would take to maintain an Abrams, it just doesn\u2019t make sense to provide that to the Ukrainians at this moment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Months of pressure on the United States and Germany to hand over battle tanks <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>eared to make headway this week with the new appointment of German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius as well as discussions on tanks at Davos and high-level NATO meetings in Brussels.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Also viewed as positive momentum was the U.S., French and German commitment earlier this month to provide Bradleys, AMX-10 RCs and Marder fighting vehicles, respectively, the first time the countries have done so.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr2_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>But former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst \u2014 who on Monday said it appeared that a deal to allow tank exports to Ukraine had \u201cbeen worked out\u201d between Washington and Berlin \u2014 told The Hill Wednesday that it appears a wrench had been thrown into the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a> that\u2019s been going on involving Berlin and the White House for months, which is the Germans would say \u2018we\u2019re not going to send any Leopards until the Americans sends Abrams.\u2019 . . . The Americans say, \u2018yes, we have no objection to Germany sending Leopards, we\u2019re not gonna send Abrams.\u2019 And then both countries get to avoid sending something they consider provocative to the Kremlin,\u201d said Herbst, now a senior director of the Atlantic Council\u2019s Eurasia Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While the West hasn\u2019t completely closed the door on committing tanks to Ukraine \u2014 with the United Kingdom last week announcing that it will send the nation 14 Challenger 2s \u2014 reluctance reigns on shipping other heavy tanks to Kyiv.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr3_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>Some experts agree the Abrams isn\u2019t a prudent addition to Ukraine\u2019s war effort at the moment due to the sheer amount of effort it would take to run it, said Jeffrey Pryce, a former Defense Department special counsel now at the Johns Hopkins University\u2019s School of Advanced International Studies.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Abrams is a majestic tank, but it comes with corresponding logistical and maintenance burdens,\u201d Pryce told The Hill. \u201cWhat we\u2019ve focused on is providing Ukrainians with capabilities that they can effectively use in the short term and the Abrams doesn\u2019t seem to in that sweet spot.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He also disagreed with assertions that the U.S. was shying away from the system due to fears of escalating the conflict, pointing to Washington\u2019s commitment to send such hi-tech systems as the Patriot missile defense system and Bradley Fighting Vehicles.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr4_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>\u201cI think it\u2019s just a judgment as to what\u2019s most helpful, what they can most efficiently absorb and effectively use in combat in the middle of a war,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>On Friday, the U.S. is expected to announce a major new weapons package for Kyiv anticipated to include Stryker armored combat vehicles but no Abrams. The military aid will be announced at a gathering of the Ukraine Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, to be attended by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley and about 50 other top defense officials from NATO as they look to coordinate future lethal assistance to Kyiv.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Leaders of Ukraine\u2019s military, which until now have used Soviet-era tanks on the battlefield, insist more modern tanks are needed and soon as Russia appears to gear up for a renewed spring offensive.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr5_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>\u201cThere is no rational reason why Ukraine has not yet been supplied with Western tanks,\u201d Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this month.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Zelensky reupped the request, saying that the need for Western tanks\u00a0 is still a \u201cpressing and very sensitive\u201d issue for Ukraine.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that he expected further announcements on military deliveries to Ukraine to come out of Ramstein but would not comment on whether Washington is pushing Berlin to give the green light for Leopard tanks for Kyiv.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr6_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>\u201cOn the question of, of tanks, and for that matter, any weapons system, these are sovereign decisions for each country to make,\u201d Blinken said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Singh echoed that message, noting that Leopards are easier to fuel and maintain.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUltimately this is Germany\u2019s decision. It\u2019s their sovereign decision on what security assistance they will provide. So we won\u2019t be able to speak to them but I think that we are certainly doing what we can to support Ukraine in what they need,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr7_ab\"><\/aside>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re continuing to work with other partners and allies around the world to see what else can be provided to Ukraine and that\u2019s the whole point of tomorrow\u2019s meeting,\u201d Singh added.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While the Biden administration has offered little detail of its conversations with Germany, the German side has been clear about wanting the U.S. to make the first move on heavy tanks, a message delivered by German chancellor Olaf Scholz in a call with President Biden and in-person to an American congressional delegation in Davos.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Finland, Poland and the Baltic states all possess Leopard 2s in their own stocks and have publicly endorsed shipping the vehicle to Ukraine, but need Germany\u2019s permission to do so due to German components within the tanks.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The impasse has angered a number of American lawmakers, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who on Wednesday tweeted for the two sides to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LindseyGrahamSC\/status\/1615880450509082630\">\u201cstop bickering.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis impasse needs to come to an end. The tanks need to go to Ukraine from BOTH countries as soon as possible.\u00a0 The future of Europe and a rules-based world is at stake,\u201d <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LindseyGrahamSC\/status\/1615880449125158912\">Graham wrote<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>And Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jim Risch (R-Idaho), on Thursday <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SenateForeign\/status\/1616124466853036066?s=20&amp;t=mus2te2BV5A_bRpbm44BnQ\">called for Germany<\/a> to \u201cim<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a>tely\u201d allow Poland and Finland to contribute Leopards.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The latest public statements from Berlin and Washington suggest Ukraine may have to keep waiting, however all involved will be keeping a close eye on the meetings at Ramstein on Friday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a decision that\u2019s going to have to be made and we\u2019ll see if there\u2019s an agreement at Ramstein,\u201d Pryce said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/defense\/3820367-how-us-german-bickering-is-blocking-ukraines-push-for-tanks\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How US-German \u2018bickering\u2019 is blocking Ukraine\u2019s push for tanks A push to provide battle tanks to Ukraine is stalled after U.S. officials this week expressed reluctance over difficulties in maintenance and training for the advanced tracked vehicle. The U.S. decision effectively prevents Ukraine getting tanks from other NATO allies as well, as Germany this week&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":541122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thehill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/01\/abrams-tank_102119ap-mindaugas-kulbis_ukraine-tanks.jpeg?w=1280","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[138549,134344,134343,134418,73798,138550,124783,115,134904,4965,138551],"class_list":["post-541121","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-abrams-tanks","tag-administration","tag-campaign","tag-congress-blog","tag-defense","tag-heavy-tanks","tag-international","tag-news","tag-russia-ukraine-war","tag-technology","tag-us-german-relations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541121","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=541121"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541121\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/541122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=541121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=541121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=541121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}