U.S.-made and supplied Abrams tanks will be sent from Australia to Ukraine under a $245 million military support package to boost the war-torn country’s fight against Russia’s invasion.
ABC News reports more than a year after Kyiv first expressed interest in the aging M1A1 fleet, and months after Australia rejected a request to donate its grounded Taipan helicopters, the Labor government confirmed it will now gift 49 units of heavy battlefield armour.
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy, who is attending a NATO defence ministers meeting in Brussels this week, will brief his Ukrainian counterpart directly about the latest support package.
“We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine in their fight against Russia’s illegal invasion,” Conroy said while in London, where he’s meeting members of the UK government before travelling to NATO.
File/A Royal Australian Air Force air movements operator from No. 23 Squadron guides a gifted Bushmaster protected mobility vehicle bound for Ukraine onto a C-17A Globemaster III aircraft at RAAF Base Amberley, Queensland. (Australian Defence Force)
“These tanks will deliver more firepower and mobility to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and complement the support provided by our partners for Ukraine’s armoured brigades — Australia has been steadfast in our support for Ukraine.”
“As we face a challenging geo-strategic environment, it is important that we continue to work together with our partners around the world to deter aggression and coercion, and protect the global rules-based order.”
In recent weeks, Australia has received the first of its 75 newer M1A2 tanks, which will eventually replace the army’s fleet of 59 older M1A1 vehicles that have never been used in combat, the ABC report notes.
Australia’s transfer of its aging Abrams to a “third country” has required permission from the United States under its International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) despite Washington last year sending 31 of its own M1A1 tanks to Ukraine.
Australia has previously donated 28 of its venerable M113 armored personnel carriers to Ukraine, a bulkier mini-tank design dating back to the Vietnam era, plus six M777 towed howitzers.
A soon-to-be-retired Australian Army M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank fires its 120mm cannon during a live-fire serial for the Coral Balmoral Cup 2024 at the Puckapunyal Military Area, Victoria. (CPL Johnny Huang/ADF)
Thirty Australian-designed and built Bushmaster armoured vehicles have also been sent after a direct request from Kyiv, as Breitbart News reported.
The latest announcement will bring the total value of Australia’s military assistance to Ukraine since the start of the war to more than $1.3 billion, while overall government support now tops $1.5 billion.