▲ Joint press conference with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius
The United States and Germany have announced support for Ukrainian tanks, which they have been reluctant to do so far.
It has been hesitant to provide it because it can stimulate Russia and there are concerns about escalation, but the situation has changed as observations have emerged that Russia may launch a large-scale offensive when the day is released this spring.
"Once weather conditions improve, we can expect Russia to ramp up its offensive further and we should be prepared for that," said John Kirby, NSC Strategic Communications Coordinator at the White House.
'M1 Abrams' going to Ukraine... performance?
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The tank that the United States decided to provide this time is the M1 Abrams, which has proven its performance through many real battles.
During the Gulf War in 1991, when one Abrams destroyed 12 Soviet-made T-55s, experts even said it was a massacre, not a battle.
The Abrams is equipped with a 1,500 horsepower gas turbine engine capable of reaching speeds of up to 70 km/h and is equipped with a 120 mm smoothbore gun as its main armament.
It also has excellent defense, so it can withstand any number of hits by adopting depleted uranium composite armor and even has radiation protection.
In addition, unlike Russian tanks in this war, which revealed a vulnerability in which the ammunition placed under the crew exploded and the crew died after being hit, the internal ammunition magazine was placed at the rear of the turret so that the explosive force was discharged to the outside even if the armor was penetrated, improving survivability. Raised.
However, as the fuel mainly used is jet fuel used in aircraft, it is not easy to supply it in Ukraine (of course, it is not impossible to use diesel or gasoline), and the maximum distance that can be run with one refueling is only about 426 km, which is a limitation. is counted.
In addition, it is pointed out that management and operation are difficult and expensive compared to other tanks.
The United States has agreed to provide 31 Abrams, which is equivalent to one battalion based on Ukrainian military standards.
It seems that it will take several months to provide a new tank instead of the existing tank possessed by the US military and deliver it to the Ukrainian army, so the US plans to provide education and training support for tank operation against the Ukrainian army before the tank is delivered.
A senior US official said the Pentagon is working on a plan to provide fuel and equipment to Ukraine for tank management and operation.
The world's strongest, Leopard 2... 2A6 model support
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Germany has also announced plans to support tanks in Ukraine.
This is the Leopard 2 tank that Ukraine most wanted.
It is also the main battle tank of the German army and is considered the best in the world in name and reality in the defense industry.
It is also equipped with a 1,500 horsepower diesel engine and a 120 mm smoothbore gun and has a maximum speed of about 70 km/h.
The 14 units supported this time are the Leopard 2 2A6 model, a specification introduced by the Bundeswehr in 2001.
Although the Leopard 2 is a large heavy tank with a combat weight of 55 tons, it not only has firepower, mobility, and defense, but also has excellent reliability.
The downside is that it's expensive, but it's not something to worry about from the point of view of receiving support.
Germany, together with its allies, plans to support two battalions of Leopard 2 tanks, about 80 to 100 tanks.
Unlike the United States, Germany plans to directly send tanks owned by the federal forces, so 14 German support units are expected to be delivered to Ukraine within the first quarter.
State-of-the-art tanks of each country, what are the variables that determine actual combat capability?
In any case, with this support decision, the war in Ukraine is expected to become an arena of competition in which the performance of the main tanks of the world's military powers can be measured.
As I mentioned earlier, the US Army's M1 Abrams, Germany's Leopard 2, Britain's Challenger 2 tank, and Russia's T-90M are all pitted against each other.
When it comes to weapons, actual experience is crucial.
One such case is that our FA-50 received attention in the international defense market after proving its combat capability in the Philippines.
In terms of experience, the US military's Abrams seem to have an advantage, but the problem is what type of aircraft the US will send.
As with most major arms exporters such as the United States and Russia, Abrams' export version differs significantly from the specifications used by the US military.
Local media predict that the new M1A2 model will be supported, not the old model M1A1, but that it will be an export version without a confidential armor package (referring to depleted uranium composite armor).
The key is how quickly and properly the US, Germany, and Britain can provide the necessary training and technical support to operate their own tanks.
Another thing, as in all modern warfare, it seems that the tank's performance as well as how much C4I (tactical command automation system) supports will be a variable.
In fact, it is rumored that the most harassing Russian military in this war was the US military's intelligence support.
The rear supply route was cut off by a barrage of high-mass rockets that suddenly flew in from invisible places, and armored units were helplessly attacked.
Can K2 Black Panther go to Ukraine?
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As I said before, the actual data is the most important weapon.
Some experts even say that if a newly developed weapon proves its performance in battle, the price will double.
This is a tempting story for Korea, which produces and exports K2 Black Panther tanks.
If the Black Panther tank can be used in the actual war in Ukraine, it can be a good opportunity in many ways in terms of finding and improving the K2 tank's vulnerabilities as well as defense exports.
However, as Germany, a NATO ally, requested the participation of the United States as a precondition for tank support, arms support must be preceded by complex domestic and foreign situations.
It is for this reason that Korea is only providing non-lethal supplies such as body armor and combat rations to Ukraine.
Russia has made it clear that it will not stand still if Korea provides arms support.
You can see it clearly from the controversy over whether the 155mm shells we exported to the US were for Ukraine support or not.
This is why K2 black ticket support is not easy.
(Photo = AP, Yonhap News)