US officials say Ukraine no longer deploys Abrams tanks delivered by Washington on the front lines, partly due to the threat from suicide drones.
The prevalence of drones on the Ukrainian battlefield makes it “impossible for both sides to drive through open areas without fear of being detected,” said an anonymous senior US defense official. told the press on April 25, when updating Washington’s support to Kiev ahead of an online meeting of the Ukraine Defense Liaison Group (UDCG), also known as the “Ramstein group”.
Admiral Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, and another unnamed Washington official said the threat from drones forced Ukraine to withdraw M1A1 Abrams tanks from the front line.
“Gathering a large number of tanks and armored vehicles in one place is very risky in the context of drones appearing everywhere,” Grady said, adding that the US will discuss with Ukraine to rebuild combat tactics after the war. withdraw Abrams.
Abrams tanks in action near Avdeevka in a video posted by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry on February 23. Photo taken from video
However, he affirmed that tanks still play an important role in the conflict in Ukraine.
“There are still ways to take advantage of them,” Grady said. “We will work with Ukraine and other partners on the ground to help them calculate how to deploy this type of weapon, when the battlefield context has changed and everything can be detected immediately.” .
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has not commented on the information.
The US in January 2023 agreed to transfer 31 Abrams tanks to Ukraine after a long request by Kiev. President Volodymyr Zelensky’s administration argued that this $10 million tank model would be an important weapon to help Ukraine break through Russian lines.
However, the battlefield situation has changed significantly since that time, when Russian forces put into widespread use reconnaissance drones and explosive warheads. These weapons make it difficult for the Ukrainian army to protect tanks and armored vehicles, because they can be easily detected and hunted by Russian drones.
A US defense official said Ukraine has not yet applied tactics that could make tanks and armored vehicles operate more effectively against the constant threat of drones.
UAV Lancet dives to attack Ukrainian Abrams tanks
Lancet UAV attacks Abrams tank in video released on March 31. Video:Telegram/RVvoenkor
AP said that Ukraine has lost 5 Abrams tanks since the beginning of this year, mainly on the Avdeevka front in Donestk province, although they were only deployed in a limited manner, not participating in coordinated raid campaigns as theorized by NATO.
Oleh, a member of the 47th Independent Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine fighting in the direction of Avdeevka, said earlier this month that this force only uses Abrams tanks to provide fire support for infantry from afar, instead of using it as a spearhead. attack on the front line.
Experts say tanks and armored vehicles are no longer as useful as they were during the Cold War. The type of battlefield in which tanks are designed to fight and survive is very different from the reality they are facing in Ukraine.
Instead of tanks, what Kiev’s forces need most today are artillery shells and anti-aircraft weapons. Anonymous US officials said the country plans to announce a $6 billion weapons procurement package for Ukraine during today’s UDGC group’s online meeting, including ammunition for the Patriot and NASAM air defense complexes, ammunition artillery, rockets for HIMARS, drones, anti-drone weapons and air-to-air missiles.
UDGC is an organization of 56 countries, including all 32 NATO members, established last year to promote military aid to Ukraine after the conflict with Russia broke out.
This will be Washington’s second support package for Kiev after President Joe Biden signed the nearly 61 billion USD aid law for Ukraine on April 24. The first aid package worth one billion USD was announced a few hours after the bill was passed by Mr. Biden, focusing on ammunition and armor.
Pham Giang (According to AP)
