Ukraine to get armoured combat vehicles from West, asks for tanks | Russia-Ukraine war News

France confirms it will send its first armored fighting vehicles to Ukraine, while the 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 Kiev has sought 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 combat vehicles to help Ukraine’s defense efforts, a French official said after a phone call between the two leaders.

“This is the first time that Western-made armored vehicles are being delivered in support of the Ukrainian military,” the official said.

The official gave no details about the volume or timing of the planned deliveries, but said talks would continue about the possible delivery of other types of French military vehicles.

A few hours later, US President Joe Biden said that Washington was considering sending Bradley fighting vehicles to Ukraine. Biden was asked during an exchange with reporters while traveling in Kentucky whether offering the armored fighting vehicle tracked in Ukraine was on the table. He answered “yes”, without giving further comments.

The Bradley is a medium armored fighting vehicle that can serve as a troop carrier. It has tracks rather than wheels, but the vehicle is lighter and more maneuverable than a tank. It can hold up to 10 personnel or be configured instead to carry additional ammunition or communications equipment.

The US has thousands of Bradleys and they 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 Kiev still lacks US-made Abrams tanks and German-made Leopard tanks, which Ukraine has repeatedly asked its Western allies to supply, especially as the winter months of the war deepen and the ground freezes, allowing for easier use. of heavy tracked tanks in the Ukrainian countryside.

In a tweet and video speech in the evening, Zelenskyy thanked Macron for announcing the armored vehicles and said it shows the need for Ukraine’s other allies to provide heavier weapons to fight Moscow’s military.

I had a long and detailed conversation with the President of France @EmmanuelMacron about the current situation. Thank you for the decision to transfer Bastion light tanks and APCs to Ukraine, as well as for intensifying work with partners in the same direction. 1/2

— Volodymyr Zelenskyi (@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 end Russian aggression this year,” he said, adding that “modern Western armored vehicles and Western-type tanks” were the main 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 lightweight and six-wheeled, rather than on rails. They are designed for reconnaissance missions and have been deployed in France’s most recent military operations overseas 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 the Ukrainian defense ministry, Andriy Cherniak, said in comments to the RBC-Ukraine media on Wednesday that Kiev did not expect to cease the Russian offensive this year, despite the large number of people.

“According to the estimates of the Ukrainian military intelligence, in the next four to five months the Russian army may lose up to 70,000 people. And the leadership of the occupying country (Russia) is ready for such losses,” said Cherniak.

Russian leaders “know they will lose, but they don’t plan to end the war,” he added.

In a signal to the West that Russia will not back down on Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday sent a frigate into the Atlantic Ocean armed with new-generation hypersonic cruise missiles that can travel more than five times the speed of sound.