Leopard and Abrams on the way: Are the tanks too late for Ukraine?

The decision has been made: the West will deliver battle tanks to Ukraine.

But will Leopard and Abrams arrive in Ukraine in time?

Altengrabow – The new Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) has only been in office for almost a week.

He probably hasn't had time to get used to the situation, because he has big tasks ahead of him.

The decision to deliver a total of 14 Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine for the war against Russia must now be followed by action.

The allies had been arguing for weeks.

But Pistorius rejected criticism of lengthy decision-making processes on Wednesday (January 26) during a visit to the troops in Altengrabow.

"We didn't hesitate, we negotiated."

Tanks for Ukraine: Are Leopard and Abrams too late?

said Ukraine's armed forces should be able to "fight successfully against Russian troops"

.

The

quoted the SPD man as saying that the first leopard company should arrive in Ukraine by “end of March, beginning of April”.

Pictures of the Ukraine war: great horror and small moments of happiness

Pictures of the Ukraine war: great horror and small moments of happiness

Initially, 14 Leopard tanks from Bundeswehr stocks are to be delivered to the Ukrainian army.

Overall, Kyiv is to receive between 80 and 90 tanks in the further course.

These are provided in cooperation with partner countries, as reported by

.

US President Joe Biden had also promised to supply 31 M1 Abrams main battle tanks.

This is the American equivalent of the Leopard-2.

West with a new line in the Ukraine war: "He is now pursuing the goal that Ukraine must win"

Experts do not believe that Germany will become a party to the war as a result of the delivery.

But with the decision to provide main battle tanks like the Leopard or the M1 Abrams, the West has fundamentally changed its line, according to conflict researcher Hein Goemans.

“The West no longer follows the line that Ukraine must not lose.

He is now pursuing the goal that Ukraine must win," said the renowned researcher.

Abrams from USA: Delivery could take over a year

But is this change of course too late?

Even before the decisions in Berlin and Washington were made, it was clear that it would not be possible to deliver main battle tanks overnight.

Training on the new combat device alone takes between three and six weeks, as military expert Andy Milburn recently explained.

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Ukraine war: Are Abrams and Leopard too late?

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© US Army / dpa

It could be “months” before the Abrams tanks reach Ukraine.

A report in the

even assumes that delivery could take place in over a year.

The German delivery is faster here.

Experts on tank deliveries: Another advantage makes it easier for Ukraine

Pistorius is convinced that the Leopard tanks will arrive “in time” before a feared Russian spring offensive in Ukraine.

"I have no indication that they will be late."

The experts at the

see another advantage for Ukraine in the commitments.

According to the assessment, the armed forces could already be planning the deliveries.

Even if the main battle tanks have not yet arrived in the Ukraine, there is the possibility of planning tank losses differently in the planning of possible counter-offensives.

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List of rubrics: © US Army/dpa