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US military refuses to give tanks to Ukraine: Report

Friday, 23 December 2022 3:11 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 23 December 2022 3:11 AM ]

US Army M1 Abrams tanks during an exercise in Bremerhaven, Germany, 2020. (File photo by AFP)

The United States will not supply Ukraine with M1 Abrams main battle tanks to help Kiev forces in its fight against Russia.

The Washington Post, citing US defense officials, reported on Wednesday night, that the Pentagon told Kiev that M1 Abrams tanks are too difficult for the Ukrainian forces to operate.

Pentagon officials cited by the Post told Kiev that the Abrams tanks are “too difficult to maintain and complex to operate,” adding that “Ukraine has enough tanks already.”

Ukraine's President Vladimir Zelensky, in his speech at the US Congress on Wednesday, cited tanks as one of his army's main requests from the US, saying Ukrainian forces were “capable of operating American tanks and aircraft.”

The United States, which has vowed to continue arming Ukraine, till now sent about $50 billion worth of weapons to the Kiev forces to fight against Russia.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that no matter how much military support the West provides to the Ukrainian government, “they will achieve nothing.”

“As the leadership of our country has stated, the tasks set within the framework of the special military operation will be fulfilled, taking into account the situation on the ground and the actual realities,”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that sending weapons would only lead to an "aggravation of the conflict" and did not "bode well for Ukraine."

Peskov reiterated that sending weapons to Ukraine will not prevent Russia from achieving its goals in Ukraine.

“This leads to the fact that, unfortunately, the suffering of the Ukrainian people will continue longer than it could have,” he added.

Peskov told journalists that President Joe Biden’s meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart at the White House showed the US is waging a proxy war of “indirect fighting” against Russia down “to the last Ukrainian.”

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