WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd March, 2023) The United States' decision to provide Ukraine with older variant of the Abrams main battle tank will not impact other US foreign military sales, Defense Department spokesperson Pat Ryder said.
"There are no impacts to other Foreign Military Sales cases," Ryder said in a statement on Wednesday.
Ryder declined to comment further on the matter due to protecting details about the foreign sales for the tank.
On Tuesday, Ryder said the United States will provide Ukraine with the M1A1 variant of the Abrams tank instead of the M1A2 variant as initially planned in order to expedite delivery of the platform to Ukraine this fall.
The newer M1A2 variant would have taken more than a year to deliver, Ryder added.
Western countries significantly increased their military support for Ukraine after Russia launched a special military operation there on February 24, 2022. The assistance includes air defense missiles, rocket launch systems, tanks, self-propelled artillery, anti-aircraft guns, armored vehicles and various types of ammunition.
The Kremlin has warned against further arms supplies that could mean direct involvement of the United States and NATO in the Ukraine conflict.
