Nicolas Tonev, edited by Romain Rouillard 8:00 p.m., February 12, 2023
While the first Western tanks promised to kyiv are beginning to be delivered, Ukrainian soldiers welcome this new equipment with some reserve.
In question, the very delicate delivery conditions but also the relative usefulness of certain tanks on the ground or the risk of training the crews too quickly.
It is with circumspection that the Ukrainian officers see part of the tanks promised by the West arriving to help them resist the Russian invader.
If this long-awaited material raises some hope, its arrival on Ukrainian territory requires extremely meticulous organization.
The reception of the machines will have to be done at night and will include many stops in well-chosen places such as hangars or forests from the west of Ukraine.
The objective: to avoid the gaze of Russian satellites and drones.
Constraining logistics
In addition, the establishment of logistics repair and fuel supply chains poses a problem according to an officer met on site by Europe 1. According to him, the American Abrams operates with a turbine and thus requires aircraft fuel as well as a dedicated supply.
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The military also wonders about the Leopard 1 tank, which would have few advantages over the old T-64s, except for the ability to move faster.
And the type of shell used would offer limited utility on today's battlefield.
If the officer recognizes that it is all the same more comfortable to benefit from a more extensive military paraphernalia, he also fears the consequences that would result from too hasty training of the crews.
In the space of about a month, his unit lost 20 tanks out of 30 with men trained, sometimes in an accelerated fashion, to meet the immediate needs of the war.