France confirms it will send first armored fighting vehicles to Ukraine, while US president says Washington is considering sending Bradley fighting vehicles.
Ukraine’s Western allies have moved for the first time to supply armored fighting vehicles to Ukrainian troops, but not the heavier tanks that Kyiv has requested to help fight Russian forces.
French President Emmanuel Macron told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday that his government would send French-made AMX-10 RC light armored combat vehicles to help Ukraine’s defense effort, a French official said after ‘a phone call between the two leaders.
“This is the first time that Western-made armored vehicles have been delivered in support of the Ukrainian military,” the official said.
The official gave no details on the volume or timing of the planned shipments, but said talks would continue on the possible delivery of other types of French military vehicles.
Hours later, US President Joe Biden said Washington was considering sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine. Biden was asked during an exchange with reporters while traveling in Kentucky if supplying the tracked armored fighting vehicle to Ukraine was on the table. He answered “yes,” without offering further comment.
The Bradley is a medium armored fighting vehicle that can serve as a troop carrier. It has tracks instead of wheels, but the vehicle is lighter and more agile than a tank. It can carry about 10 personnel or be configured to carry additional ammunition or communications equipment.
The US has thousands of Bradleys and would give Ukraine more firepower on the battlefield and strengthen its trench warfare capability.
The Pentagon has already provided Ukraine with more than 2,000 combat vehicles, including 477 mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles and more than 1,200 Humvees.
The latest donation to Kyiv still falls short of the US-made Abrams tanks and German-made Leopard tanks that Ukraine has repeatedly asked its Western allies to supply, particularly as the war’s winter months deepen and the earth freezes, allowing for easier use. of heavy tracked tanks in the Ukrainian countryside.
In a tweet and video address in the evening, Zelenskyy thanked Macron for announcing the armored vehicles and said it showed the need for Ukraine’s other allies to provide heavier weapons to fight Moscow’s military .
He had a long and detailed conversation with the President of France @EmmanuelMacron about the current situation. Thankful for the decision to transfer light tanks and APC Bastion to Ukraine, as well as to intensify work with partners in the same direction. 1/2
— Volodymyr Zelensky (@ZelenskyyUa) January 4, 2023
“This is something that sends a clear signal to all our partners. There is no rational reason why Ukraine has not yet been supplied with Western tanks,” Zelenskyy said.
“We must put an end to Russian aggression this year,” he said, adding that “modern Western armored vehicles and Western-type tanks” were the key assets Ukraine needed.
On Twitter, Zelenskyy said of Macron: “Thank you friend! Your leadership brings our victory closer.”
The French-made AMX-10 RC tanks are light and on six wheels, rather than on tracks. They were designed for reconnaissance missions and have been deployed in France’s most recent overseas military operations in the Sahel region of West Africa and in Afghanistan.
They are “very mobile… maybe old but high performance,” a French official said.
An official from the intelligence section of Ukraine’s defense ministry, Andriy Cherniak, said in comments to the RBC-Ukraine media outlet on Wednesday that Kyiv did not expect the Russian offensive to slow down this year despite the large number of people.
“According to estimates of Ukrainian military intelligence, in the next four to five months the Russian army could lose up to 70,000 people. And the leadership of the occupying country (Russia) is ready for these losses,” he said Cherniak.
The Russian leaders “understand that they will lose, but they do not plan to end the war”, he added.
In a signal to the West that Russia will not back down over Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday sent a frigate into the Atlantic Ocean armed with next-generation hypersonic cruise missiles, which can travel at more than five times the speed of sound.