The UK plans for the 14 Challenger 2 MBTs it is donating to Ukraine to be operated by Ukrainian crews before the end of March. (Crown copyright)
The 14 Challenger 2 main battle tanks (MBTs) that the United Kingdom is donating to Ukraine will be operated by Ukrainian crews before the end of March, a UK Ministry of Defence spokesperson told Janes on 18 January. He added that the AS90 self-propelled howitzers (SPHs) the UK is also donating to Ukraine would follow but could not say when.
UK Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace told the House of Commons on 16 January that the squadron of Challenger 2 tanks being donated to Ukraine would include armoured recovery and repair vehicles.
He welcomed the French government's decision to provide Ukraine with AMX-10RC armoured reconnaissance vehicles. French President Emmanuel Macron informed his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky during a phone call on 4 January that the vehicles would be donated to Kyiv. French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu told Ukrainian Minister of Defence Oleksii Reznikov during a phone conversation on 12 January that the AMX-10RCs would be delivered to Ukraine within two months.
Wallace told the parliament that the UK would donate eight AS90 SPHs from a high readiness British Army battery and two other batteries at various states of readiness, adding that this would not affect the UK's deployment of AS90s in Estonia. The UK plans to provide Ukraine with around 30 AS90s, according to the 14 January government press release announcing the donation of the MBTs and SPHs to Kyiv.
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