USA, Abrams tank in Kiev with depleted uranium shells

After weeks of internal debate on how to equip the Abrams tanks that are being handed over to the Kiev regime the Biden administration is expected to supply Ukraine with depleted uranium munitions, the Wall Street Journal reported.

A senior administration official said there appear to be no serious obstacles to approving the supply of the dangerous munitions. The Pentagon insists that the Abrams tanks that the US is supplying Ukraine are armed with depleted uranium shells, regularly used by the US military and highly effective against Russian tanks. The shells, fired at high velocity, are capable of penetrating the frontal armor of a Russian tank from a distance.

"The bullet hits like a freight train," says Scott Boston, a Rand Corporation defense analyst and former Army ordnance officer. - It's very long and very dense. So it directs a lot of kinetic energy to a specific point on the enemy armor."

The proposal has been discussed in the White House, with some officials expressing fears that sending the shells could draw criticism against Washington for supplying weapons that could pose serious health and environmental risks.

The previously unreported discussions over tank shells come in the context of a major (for the West) Ukrainian counter-offensive to recover territory from Russian forces, explains The Wall Street Journal. President Volodymyr Zelenski said on Saturday that the long-awaited and much-sought-after operation had begun.

Biden administration officials say the US goal is to allow Ukraine to make as much headway on the battlefield as possible, to put Kiev in a good position should peace talks take place. However, the Biden administration has disagreed on how best to support Ukrainian forces, including whether to provide cluster munitions.

Political support for Ukraine remains strong on Capitol Hill, but some lawmakers argue that support could start to wane if Kiev's counteroffensive proves unsuccessful and that the White House should more actively support the country's current arms demands.

As the newspaper recalls, the ammunition epic began in January, when the White House decided to supply Ukraine with 31 Abrams tanks as part of a broader agreement under which Berlin and other European capitals would agree to send German-made Leopard 2 tanks.