Western security assistance to Ukraine as it fights Russia has ramped up in the first few weeks of the new year, with five different countries announcing that they intend to provide Kyiv with armored combat vehicles.
On Thursday, Sweden, an aspiring NATO member, became the latest country to announce that it will send much-sought-after military hardware, pledging to transfer Combat Vehicle 90 infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine as part of its largest aid package so far.
Sweden has joined the US, Germany, and France, which have said that they will send Bradley, Marder, and AMX-10 RC armored vehicles, respectively. And the UK has said that it will send a squadron of Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine, making it the first Western country to send Western-made tanks to Kyiv.
While these much-sought-after weapons will give Ukraine a significant boost in firepower and ground combat capability, a handful of big-ticket items on Kyiv's heavy armor wish list continue to be kept out of military aid packages, such as the German-made Leopard tank and the American M1 Abrams tank.
NATO countries have pressed Germany to approve sending its tanks to Ukraine, but Berlin has been unwilling to sign off on any transfers, saying that the US would also need to send its own tanks. However, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Thursday that his country may eventually go rogue and send its Leopard tanks to Kyiv without German approval.
Ukraine's push to secure tanks and fighting vehicles comes as Russia's unprovoked invasion nears its one-year mark, with fighting heavily concentrated in the eastern Donbas region. Heavy armor could help Kyiv make advances in what has turned into a bloody and grinding affair.
Take a look at the five pieces of heavy armor that Western countries are sending to Ukraine.