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Maintenance costs preventing US from sending Abrams tanks to Ukraine — TV

It is reported that "there is nothing stopping Germany from authorizing the dispatch of Leopard-2 tanks, which have high efficiency and combat capability"

CAIRO, January 19. /TASS/. The United States is unwilling to send Abrams tanks to Ukraine due to high maintenance and operation costs, Sky News Arabia reported on Thursday, citing a Pentagon source.

In addition, according to the source, it will be "difficult to train [Ukrainian troops] on Abrams tanks in the short time left before the spring."

The source also criticized Germany for its "unbalanced" position linking the handover of Leopard-2 tanks to Kiev to the provision of Abrams tanks. In his view, "there is nothing stopping Germany from authorizing the dispatch of Leopard-2 tanks, which have high efficiency and combat capability."

Germany’s Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper said on Wednesday, citing its own sources, that the country’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz had said in a phone call with US President Joe Biden that Berlin would agree to authorize Leopard-2 supplies to Kiev only if Washington sent Abrams tanks to Ukraine. According to the paper, the US leader did not unequivocally confirm Washington’s plans to provide the tanks to Kiev during the call.

Western defense ministers will gather at the US Ramstein Base in Germany on January 20 to discuss further assistance to Kiev, primarily, the handover of Leopard tanks.