UK Chief of the General Staff General Sir Patrick Sanders has warned that supplying Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine would leave Britain “temporarily weaker”, according to British media.
In a leaked statement, Sanders insisted that the delivery of 14 UK tanks to Kiev would “leave a gap in our inventory”, adding that the British military would struggle to meet its NATO obligations, Sputnik reported, citing a British media outlet.
The outlet also referred to a video posted on the UK army’s intranet, where Sanders reportedly “hinted at the military’s unease over the decision by No 10 to give heavy armor to Ukraine while also cutting the number of tanks” in the British armed forces.
The chief of the general staff’s claims have purportedly prompted the Defense Secretary to start reviewing the decision to reduce the number of tanks in the British Army, according to the report.
A separate UK media outlet, meanwhile, underscored that the main question is what number of tanks, including UK ones, “will give Kiev the chance to mount its own offensive.”
“Experts at the International Institute for Strategic Studies said last week they believed the answer was ‘around 100’, a figure broadly endorsed by Phil Osborn, a former UK chief of defense intelligence, although that depends on proper training, a good supply of spares, and what Ukraine’s battle plans are for spring 2023,” according to the outlet.
It added, “What all that makes clear is that the UK donation of 14 Challenger 2s is not itself enough and that even if Britain wanted to go further from its nominal stock of 227, it could not provide anything like the volume required in isolation.”
Earlier last week, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call that London would provide Kiev with 14 Challenger 2 tanks.
“The Prime Minister outlined the UK’s ambition to intensify our support to Ukraine, including through the provision of Challenger 2 tanks and additional artillery systems,” Sunak’s office said.
Source: Agencies
