According to the Prime Minister, the United Kingdom is prepared to provide Ukraine with additional artillery systems and Challenger 2 tanks.
Despite Russia’s warning not to start a war by sending military supplies to Kyiv, the UK government is going to give Ukraine a new package of deadly military equipment, including heavy battle tanks.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised to provide a squadron of Challenger 2 tanks and additional artillery systems, with the first armored vehicles being delivered immediately, during a Saturday phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
A Sunak spokesperson stated, “The prime minister outlined the UK’s ambition to intensify our support for Ukraine, including through the provision of Challenger 2 tanks and additional artillery systems.”
also read: Britain attempt to launch its first space military satellites fails.
A Downing Street source said yesterday that four Challenger 2 tanks will be delivered immediately, and eight more will be delivered shortly after that, according to the British Sun.
In the meantime, Zelensky praised the decision made by the UK, stating that it would “send the right signal” given that Kyiv has been requesting more heavy weapons from its allies.
Zelensky made the following statement via Twitter: “I thanked (Prime Minister Rishi Sunak) for the decisions that will not only strengthen us on the battlefield but also send the right signal to other partners.”
The UK becomes the first Western power to provide the Ukrainians with main battle tanks as a result of this move.
The British company Vickers Defense Systems designed and built the Challenger 2, a battle tank that has been in use with the UK army since 1994. The tank has previously been used in Iraq, Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The United Kingdom has pledged £2.3 billion in military assistance to Ukraine, according to the Ministry of Defense (MoD) on Saturday.
Germany contemplates deploying Western tanks in Kyiv.
Germany has also come under fire from the Ukrainian government, which announced last week that it would send Marder fighting vehicles to Kyiv.
Additionally, Berlin cannot rule out the delivery of Leopard tanks, which are heavier fighting vehicles than Marders, according to the German economy minister.
Bloomberg reports that the German federal government will announce its decision next week regarding the supply of Western tanks to Ukraine.
Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian foreign minister, claims that Germany’s decision will determine whether Finland, Poland, and three other nations will transfer Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.
“From a light-wheeled tank, the French struck the first blow on this wall… The French are doing great; they took the first step. The Minister continued, “Then the Poles… But the promise of Leopard is the second such step.”
“And I know at least three other countries that are ready to do this, but they don’t talk about it yet, because they want to say it out loud only when they are one hundred percent sure that the Germans will come out and say ‘we are for it,'” Kuleba continued. “And I know at least three other countries that are ready to do this.”
The German-made Leopard 2 tanks that a number of European allies use have been requested by the Ukrainian government for a long time.
Compared to other nations like the United Kingdom and the United States, Germany takes a more cautious approach when it comes to providing Ukraine with weapons.
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched its “special military operation” in Ukraine with the stated goal of “de-Nazifying” the nation.
Since then, Kyiv has received substantial deliveries of heavy weapons and unprecedented waves of economic sanctions from the United States and Europe against Moscow. The Kremlin has repeatedly warned that Western military assistance and sanctions will only prolong the war.
source: kyivpost
