What U.S. and Western Vehicles Could Be Headed to Ukraine?

The White House is considering whether it should send Stryker Armored Vehicles to Ukraine's front lines, it was reported on Tuesday.

Another round of U.S. military aid could be revealed by the end of next week, according to Politico, but a Pentagon spokesperson told the publication they "have no announcements to make at this time."

This comes after France announced it would send AMX-10 RC light armored fighting vehicles to Ukraine, in what one Paris official described as the "first time that Western-made armored vehicles are being delivered in support of the Ukrainian army."

What Are Stryker Armored Vehicles?

A family of eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicles, there are 18 variants of Stryker Armored Vehicles with a common chassis.

The vehicles, produced by General Dynamics Land Systems, are designed to "provide the warfighter with a reliable, combat-tested platform that includes significant survivability and capability enhancements since the original fielding in 2002," according to the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center.

Able to ferry nine soldiers, the armored vehicles have an operational range of 330 miles, and a maximum speed of 60mph.

An unnamed Defense Department official told Politico that although Stryker Armored Vehicles, which can come fitted with a .50-caliber machine gun or an MK19 grenade launcher, are "not as good as a Bradley for a tank fight," they can offer protection to infantry soldiers and "get up close" in a conflict.

Bradley Fighting Vehicles

The Pentagon has confirmed that the U.S. would send around 50 Bradley Fighting Vehicles, or tracked medium-armored vehicles, to Ukraine's armed forces.

Kitted out with a 25mm gun, they are an "integral part of the U.S. Army's Armored Brigade Combat Team," according to manufacturer BAE Systems.

Former White House defense budget analyst Mark Cancian told Bloomberg in December that Bradleys "would provide a major increase in ground combat capability because it is, in effect, a light tank."

Retired Col. Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, who has commanded U.K. and NATO chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense (CBRN) forces, agreed that the Bradleys could "certainly" bolster the Ukrainian resistance effort, previously telling Newsweek they could be of particular use in the Crimean Peninsula.

Leopard II Tanks

Germany has resisted the calls to furnish Kyiv's armed forces with its Leopard II tanks, despite pressure notably from France Poland, which is looking to form a coalition of Western partners to jointly send the vehicles to Ukraine.

Belgium's former prime minister and member of the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, has said that following France's announcement, "there is nowhere for the German Government to hide."

Germany holds the export license on Leopard II tanks, meaning it controls whether the tanks can roll out in Ukrainian territory.

German Economy Minister Robert Habeck suggested to German broadcaster ARD on Sunday that the move "can't be ruled out," but the following day, a government spokesperson told the media there were no plans in place for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government to send the tanks.

The tank is described as having an "exquisite balance of speed, armor and firepower" and is "widely considered at least the equal of the American M-1, itself the gold standard for modern tanks," according to Forbes.

Germany has said it would send 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles in the next three months.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pushed for tanks, saying that there is "no rational reason why Ukraine has not yet been supplied with Western-type tanks."

AMX-10 RC Armored Fighting Vehicles

However, Zelensky did thank French President Emmanuel Macron "for the decision to transfer light tanks," in a Twitter post on January 4, following what he described as a "long and detailed conversation" with the French leader.

The AMX-10 RC armored vehicles are sometimes named "light tanks," though they fall short of being a main battle tank, as noted by the Ukrainian outlet the Kyiv Post.

A long-time staple of the French military, it was described to Politico as "an armored reconnaissance vehicle" that is "destined to help Ukraine recover occupied territories" by François Heisbourg, senior adviser for Europe at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Challenger 2 Tanks

The Challenger 2 tanks are hailed by the British Army as having "never experienced a loss at the hands of the enemy." They have been rolled out in conflict in Iraq, Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The upgrade for the Challenger 1 tank, the Challenger 2 is manufactured by BAE Systems and Land Armaments. The British Army has been using the Challenger 1's successor since the summer of 1994.

Weighing in at 68.9 tons, it comes equipped with a 120mm rifled gun. The Challenger 2 can reach a maximum on-road speed of 37 mph, with a top on-road operational range of 340 miles.

On Monday, it was reported that the British government was mulling over whether to send several British Army Challenger 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine, although no final decision has been made by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

One source told Britain's Sky News that Kyiv could receive up to 10 Challenger 2 tanks, which would be enough to equip a squadron.

Quoting an anonymous Western source familiar with the matter, the outlet reported that discussions around sending the main battle tanks had been ongoing for "a few weeks."

A Ukrainian source then argued the move "would encourage others to give tanks."

The source added it would be a "good precedent" to push for German Leopard tanks and the U.S. Army's Abrams tanks.

In December, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu told Newsweek that main battle tanks were part a NATO-made contribution that could "make a strategic difference in the course of the war."

Glen Grant, a military analyst with the Baltic Security Foundation, previously told Newsweek "the Challenger is a frightening beast" that is "bigger, and much more of a monster than Soviet vehicles and tanks."

The Kremlin has condemned Western military aid to Ukraine, commenting after France's announcement that armored vehicle deliveries "cannot and will not be able to change anything in Ukraine."

"These deliveries can add pain to the Ukrainian people and prolong its sufferings but principally they will be unable to solve anything and disrupt the process of achieving the goals of the special military operation," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.