President Joe Biden is authorizing the shipment of Bradley Fighting Vehicles, armored troop transportation tracked vehicles, to Ukraine to help defend the country against Russian invaders, Politico reports.
Next on the agenda for Biden: deciding whether to ship tanks to the besieged nation. Biden is reportedly considering a Ukrainian request for modern Western heavy armor. Shipping the Bradleys–which may be armed with chain guns, machine guns and TOW anti-tank missiles–and other allied armored vehicles to Ukraine advances the firepower of weapon systems Western nations are supplying to the defenders. The Bradley will join fleets of German Marder Infantry Fighting Vehicle and French AMX-10 RC armored fighting vehicles, with a 105-mm gun, on the Ukrainian lines.
Depending on the performance of the Ukrainians with these arms, Biden will consider sending American tanks to the Ukrainians, who are now using Soviet-era tanks. The M-1 Abrams tank would be a significant upgrade to their current tanks, the newest of which were designed with 1990’s technology.