In a statement issued late Jan. 14, No. 10 Downing Street announced that “the Prime Minister is set to accelerate the U.K.’s diplomatic and military support to Ukraine in the weeks ahead in a bid to push Russia further back and secure a lasting peace.” On the armaments front, that means 14 Challenger 2 tanks will be going in. The weapons will be accompanied by “a flurry of U.K. diplomatic activity” globally, with senior ministers instructed to “drive international action as we approach the first anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February.”
“U.K. defense and security officials believe a window has opened up where Russia is on the backfoot due to resupply issues and plummeting morale. The Prime Minister is therefore encouraging allies to deploy their planned support for 2023 as soon as possible to have maximum impact,” the statement went on. “Sending Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine is the start of a gear change in the U.K.’s support. A squadron of 14 tanks will go into the country in the coming weeks.… Around 30 AS90s, which are large, self-propelled guns, operated by five gunners, are expected to follow. The Defense Secretary will set out further details of this support in the House of Commons on Monday,” Jan. 16.
The other side of this offensive is pressure on other countries to join the U.K. in its accelerated madness. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace is to travel to Germany and Estonia this week “to work with NATO allies and other international partners to this end,” while Foreign Secretary James Cleverly will be traveling to Washington and Ottawa to “coordinate” with those two governments.
