Australia Ships First Batch of Decommissioned Abrams MBTs to Ukraine by Sea

20 Mei 2025

The process of loading the first of 49 vehicles onto a cargo ship began recently (photo: Aus DoD)

TSAMTO -- Australia has begun the practical transfer of decommissioned M1A1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine; the dispatch of the first batch of MBTs was confirmed on May 18 by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The Australian television channel ABC reported this on May 19, as reported by RIA Novosti.

The decommissioned Abrams tanks, which the government of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised to Ukraine last year, were considered "stuck" in the country for an indefinite period as of April. Representatives of the Australian Ministry of Defense explained the delay in their transfer by resistance from the United States. However, the day before (May 18), the prime minister said in a conversation with Zelensky that the decommissioned Australian Abrams tanks had already been sent to Ukraine.

As ABC reports, the Australian government said it would not discuss the current location of the tanker ship or its expected arrival date in Europe for "security reasons."

The channel reports that before starting the shipment process, Australia "had to wait for Washington's approval to export the American tanks to a third country," which was received despite the fact that American officials "remained privately disappointed by the donation."

"Last year, before Donald Trump came back as president, we warned the Australians that sending these Abrams tanks would be difficult and that when they finally got to the battlefield, the Ukrainians would have a hard time servicing them," a US official told ABC on condition of anonymity.

(TSAMTO)