Ukraine Pulls US Tanks on Drone Threats04/26 06:22

   

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ukraine has sidelined U.S.-provided Abrams M1A1 battle 
tanks for now in its fight against Russia, in part because Russian drone 
warfare has made it too difficult for them to operate without detection or 
coming under attack, two U.S. military officials told The Associated Press.

   The U.S. agreed to send 31 Abrams to Ukraine in January 2023 after an 
aggressive monthslong campaign by Kyiv arguing that the tanks, which cost about 
$10 million apiece, were vital to its ability to breach Russian lines.

   But the battlefield has changed substantially since then, notably by the 
ubiquitous use of Russian surveillance drones and hunter-killer drones. Those 
weapons have made it more difficult for Ukraine to protect the tanks when they 
are quickly detected and hunted by Russian drones or rounds.

   Five of the 31 tanks have already been lost to Russian attacks.

   The proliferation of drones on the Ukrainian battlefield means "there isn't 
open ground that you can just drive across without fear of detection," a senior 
defense official told reporters Thursday.

   The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide an update on 
U.S. weapons support for Ukraine before Friday's Ukraine Defense Contact Group 
meeting.

   For now, the tanks have been moved from the front lines, and the U.S. will 
work with the Ukrainians to reset tactics, said Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice 
Chairman Adm. Christopher Grady and a third defense official who confirmed the 
move on the condition of anonymity.

   "When you think about the way the fight has evolved, massed armor in an 
environment where unmanned aerial systems are ubiquitous can be at risk," Grady 
told the AP in an interview this week, adding that tanks are still important.

   "Now, there is a way to do it," he said. "We'll work with our Ukrainian 
partners, and other partners on the ground, to help them think through how they 
might use that, in that kind of changed environment now, where everything is 
seen immediately."

   News of the sidelined tanks comes as the U.S. marks the two-year anniversary 
of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries that 
meets monthly to assess Ukraine's battlefield needs and identify where to find 
needed ammunition, weapons or maintenance to keep Ukraine's troops equipped.

   Recent aid packages, including the $1 billion military assistance package 
signed by President Joe Biden on Wednesday, also reflect a wider reset for 
Ukrainian forces in the evolving fight.

   The U.S. is expected to announce Friday that it also will provide about $6 
billion in long-term military aid to Ukraine, U.S. officials said, adding that 
it will include much sought after munitions for Patriot air defense systems. 
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made 
public.

   The $1 billion package emphasized counter-drone capabilities, including 
.50-caliber rounds specifically modified to counter drone systems; additional 
air defenses and ammunition; and a host of alternative, and cheaper, vehicles, 
including Humvees, Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles and Mine Resistant Ambush 
Protected Vehicles.

   The U.S. also confirmed for the first time that it is providing long-range 
ballistic missiles known as ATACMs, which allow Ukraine to strike deep into 
Russian-occupied areas without having to advance and be further exposed to 
either drone detection or fortified Russian defenses.

   While drones are a significant threat, the Ukrainians also have not adopted 
tactics that could have made the tanks more effective, one of the U.S. defense 
officials said.

   After announcing it would provide Ukraine the Abrams tanks in January 2023, 
the U.S. began training Ukrainians at Grafenwoehr Army base in Germany that 
spring on how to maintain and operate them. They also taught the Ukrainians how 
to use them in combined arms warfare -- where the tanks operate as part of a 
system of advancing armored forces, coordinating movements with overhead 
offensive fires, infantry troops and air assets.

   As the spring progressed and Ukraine's highly anticipated counteroffensive 
stalled, shifting from tank training in Germany to getting Abrams on the 
battlefield was seen as an imperative to breach fortified Russian lines. 
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on his Telegram channel in 
September that the Abrams had arrived in Ukraine.

   Since then, however, Ukraine has only employed them in a limited fashion and 
has not made combined arms warfare part of its operations, the defense official 
said.

   During its recent withdrawal from Avdiivka, a city in eastern Ukraine that 
was the focus of intense fighting for months, several tanks were lost to 
Russian attacks, the official said.

   A long delay by Congress in passing new funding for Ukraine meant its forces 
had to ration ammunition, and in some cases they were only able to shoot back 
once for every five or more times they were targeted by Russian forces.

   In Avdiivka, Ukrainian forces were badly outgunned and fighting back against 
Russian glide bombs and hunter-killer drones with whatever ammunition they had 
left.