After weeks of tortuous back-channel negotiations with the German chancellor and other European leaders, who demanded that the United States must contribute its own tanks in order to release a flow of heavy European armaments, President Biden announced on Wednesday that he would send M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine.

Despite his reluctance, his decision now makes it possible for numerous European countries to send Leopard 2 tanks built in Germany to Ukraine in two or three months. The fact that President Volodymyr Zelensky is preparing to retake territory that Russia has taken over is the latest in a series of gradual escalations that have inched the situation closer to a decisive turn in the spring offensive, though it is unclear whether or not this will make a significant difference.

In interviews, American and European officials admitted that it was unthinkable three months ago for Mr. Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and the leaders of other European countries to have donated such powerful weapons. However, they contended that as the battlefield evolved, there was less of a chance that President Vladimir V. Putin would use a tactical nuclear weapon to decimate Ukrainian forces.

Furthermore, they claimed that they wanted to show Mr. Putin that his prediction that European unity would break down over the winter had been wrong and that NATO had continued to support the war despite gas and oil shortages and concerns that Russian cyberattacks would damage European infrastructure.

Only last week, Mr. Austin rejected the notion of sending the Abrams tank, claiming that the stretched-thin Ukrainian forces couldn’t manage its lengthy tail of supply and repair trucks.

State Of The Conflict

• Military Assistance: Following weeks of domestic and international pressure to supply armored vehicles aimed at assisting Kyiv to reclaim land seized by Russia, Germany and the United States declared they will send combat tanks to Ukraine. But before the tanks roll across the battlefield, it can take months.
• Corruption Scandal: The biggest shakeup in President Volodymyr Zelensky’s administration since the start of Russia’s invasion 11 months ago occurred when numerous top Ukrainian officials were removed following a series of charges of government corruption.
• An Expanding Cemetery: Recent satellite images and video of an expanding cemetery provide a rare glimpse at the combat casualties suffered by the Wagner mercenary force during the conflict.

Unsurprisingly, the Russians had a different perspective. Anatoly Antonov, the Russian ambassador to the United States, spent the most of the day on social media speculating about a larger American scheme and asserting that “it is all about U.S. “proxy-war” with our nation.”

The imagery of the proxy war concerned both Mr. Biden and Mr. Scholz, but for different reasons. Mr. Scholz said in private meetings that even eight decades after World War II, European nations would feel uneasy watching German tanks rumble into war — even in the name of liberating Ukrainian territory. Mr. Biden is concerned about escalation.

So, What’s Next?

According to sources, the United States agreed to deploy 31 tanks because that is how many a Ukrainian battalion had. There are still a few issues to be resolved. According to Army assistant secretary Douglas R. Bush, the Army hasn’t chosen which precise Abram’s tank model it will send.

The Army already possesses tanks that could want some updating, so General Dynamics won’t have to start from scratch. More than 1,000 Abrams tanks that are now in various stages of partial construction or are combat-ready for the Army could be modified for deployment in Ukraine.

As per the sources, purchasing the tanks will take months, giving the American military time to instruct Ukrainian forces on how to operate and maintain them. Pentagon sources said on Wednesday that it was unclear whether training would take place in Germany, the United States, or both.