Australia has completed the transfer of M1A1 Abrams battle tanks to Ukraine as part of military assistance.
This is reported by ABC.
The last 12 of the 49 promised Australian tanks were recently delivered to Ukraine.
The equipment, accompanied by Australian military personnel, was shipped by cargo ship in October. After 55 days, it arrived at a classified location in Poland. There, it was inspected and prepared for transfer to Ukraine.
Australia is handing over its M1A1 tanks in their basic configuration. All further modifications will depend on Ukrainian forces.
The publication notes that since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, Australia has provided Ukraine with $1.7 billion in military aid. The country is the largest donor to Ukraine outside of NATO.
- Australia had 59 M1A1 Abrams tanks in service, purchased in 2007. They were never deployed in a combat zone, and were decommissioned in July 2024.It was decided to transfer some to Ukraine. The first 37 tanks arrived in Ukraine in July of this year.
- Before deliveries could begin, Australia had to wait for US permission to export American tanks to a third country.
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