Posted on 04/01/2022 10:22:33 AM PDT by blam
In a significant escalation that is sure to have huge impact not only on the prospect for direct Russia-NATO military confrontation but also Europe’s energy crisis and natural gas showdown with Moscow, Germany has approved “tanks” for Ukraine.
“Germany has approved the delivery of 56 combat tanks to Ukraine, a German defense ministry spokesperson told CNN Friday,” according to a breaking report. But more specifically these are in actuality ‘infantry fighting vehicles’ – and lighter than what CNN is referencing as conventional “combat tanks”.
The ministry described to CNN that “The tanks, which are type Pbv 501, stem from the Cold War-era East German army and had been sold to Sweden, then resold to the Czech Republic, who will deliver them to Ukraine.”
Final approval is expected to come pending review by the country’s Federal Security Council, as stipulated under the German War Weapons Control Act.
The 56 PbV-501 armored personnel carriers are expected to be equipped with cannons and machine guns. Reuters details the nature of the heavy armored vehicles as follows:
Germany has approved the delivery to Ukraine of several dozen infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) that originally belonged to the former communist East Germany amid criticism that Berlin is not sending enough military aid to Kyiv.
Berlin has given the green light for 56 vehicles of the type PbV-501 to be passed on from a Czech company to Kyiv, a spokesman for the defense ministry said on Friday.
So Germany has gone in a little over a month from being ‘neutral’ on weapons for foreign conflict, refusing to allow even third parties from shipping German-produced weapons to Ukraine, to now shipping some serious heavy military machinery.
For all the harping everywhere on Germany over military aid to Ukraine, they’re the first ones to send (or rather, approve sending ex-theirs) infantry fighting vehicles for Ukraine. Great EU collaboration of MS involved (🇨🇿🇩🇪). No, it’s not a tank, despite the turret. pic.twitter.com/p2RtX2wS3o
— Jakub Jaraczewski (@J_Jaraczewski) April 1, 2022
And even though these old east German troop carriers will do little to stand up to Russia’s actual tank units, Kiev is likely to seize on this as at least a start leading possibly to the transfer of more up-to-date combat tanks from the West capable of blunting Russian infantry.
Will Germany 'march' into Russia and turn the gas valves back on?
The West continues to push us into WWIII
The krauts can do whatever their little goose-stepping hearts want. This isn't America's problem.
“You furnish the pictures and I’ll furnish the war.”
– William Randolph Hearst, January 25, 1898
Will Germany ‘march’ into Russia and turn the gas valves back on?
Hans Gudegast, where are you now?
Regards,
LOL, sending more archaic Russian garbage. Kinda smart though. Now it’s up to Ukraine to get rid of the hulks.
Might be gold for gas now.
It’s time to return some of the German missiles to the original sender. I heard they do wonders for the high-speed trains.
Gas is flowing today from Russia. Putin’s bluff was called again by the Germans.
He will be celebrating his 81st b’day Sunday and his 42nd season as Victor Newman on The Young and the Restless.
Maybe the Russians will roll out some vintage T-34 tanks to remind Germany what happened the last time German Tanks were in Ukraine.
I have been surprised by just how poorly their armor has preformed.
The reactive armor on their tanks is a bad joke for their crews. It doesn't seem to do anything but attract munitions. They might as well hang boxes of Lucky Charms on the tanks.
One nuke could ruin your whole day!
my sympathy for woke German idiots has evaporated.
sanctions are backfiring
stupid,stupid,stupid
July 13, 1943.
Largest Tank Battle In History Ends
I was born 5 months later.
Armor 6–33 mm (0.24–1.30 in) welded rolled steel
Designed 1961–1965
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMP-1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_BMP-1_variants#Sweden
Manufactured in Czechoslovakia, deployed to East Germany, sold to Sweden, now to Ukraine via Czech Republic firm.
Of course, the pictures are of no help. Just stock shots.
The cited article (Zubu Brothers?) indicates they are ex-GDR BMPs. Not clear if they are BMP-1s or BMP-2s. So the Germans are giving the Ukrainians 56 vehicles that may be as much as 32 years old (or older). Swell.
Hopefully, the German long-term storage program for these vehicles was better than the Russian one was for theirs.
BTW, 56 BMPs is about 1 mechanized infantry battalion’s worth of vehicles.
...and rubles are flowing to Russia, so everyone is happy.
No they are not.
1. They're not "krauts." They're Germans.
2. They don't "goose-step." Those were the Nazis, who are long gone. Do you like it when someone equates all Americans with slaveowners?
3. The U.S. calls the shots for NATO, especially for Germany. If Germany is doing this, it's at the behest of the Neocons controlling Biden.
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