According to Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK Vadym Prystaiko, after the February visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to London, the promised 14 units of armored vehicles were decided to be doubled.
The British leadership will deliver twice as many Challenger 2 tanks to Kyiv as previously promised. This statement was made by the Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK Vadym Prystaiko, the Ukrainian service of Radio Liberty reports.
Prystaiko noted that the British authorities initially announced the delivery of 14 Challenger 2 tanks, but after the February visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, they decided to double the number of armored vehicles.
According to the Ukrainian diplomat, by its decisions, London is gradually forming a consensus on the transfer of certain new weapons to Kyiv.
He recalled that the news about the supply of tanks was a breakthrough and prompted the rest of the allied countries to follow this example.
“Despite the fact that the announcement was made, it took almost a week for the official confirmation from the prime minister to officially repeat it,” the diplomat said.
British representatives tried to convince the allies that there were two options. The first is that Britain itself makes a breach and announces deliveries, and then everyone else should follow it, the second is that all together on one front, like NATO, take this very important step.
The British initiative was successful, and, according to the Ukrainian ambassador, the same fate awaits the F-16 fighters.
Recall that in Ukraine they plan to build a plant for the production of Panther tanks, which will annually produce up to 400 units of armored vehicles.
Focus previously reported that Germany plans to buy 96 Leopard 2 tanks from Switzerland in order to transfer them to the allies. At the same time, the EU is developing a scheme for accelerated deliveries of howitzer ammunition to Ukraine. According to journalists, such an initiative is comparable to the plan that was used to purchase vaccines during the coronavirus pandemic in Europe.
