Ukraine Has Received Over Two Dozen Ex-Australian Army Abrams Tanks

The first tranche of M1A1 Abrams tanks donated by Australia to the Ukrainian Armed Forces have arrived in the country, three weeks after the first images confirmed the vehicles’ arrival in Poland in transit. The Ukrainian Armed Forces reported that the majority of the 49 tanks donated have been received, with the remainder scheduled to arrive in the following months. Commenting on the delivery, Australian Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles reported: “The M1A1 Abrams tanks will make a significant contribution to Ukraine’s ongoing fight against Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion… Australia remains steadfast in our support for Ukraine and seeing a just and lasting peace.” The tanks in question have been retired by the Australian Army, which has transitioned its tank units to operate the modern M1A2 SEPv3 variant.

Further commenting on the transfer, Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy observed: “Australia stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine. These modified M1A1 Abrams tanks will deliver more firepower and more mobility to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. They meet a direct request from the Ukrainian Government and form part of Australia’s unwavering commitment to protect the global rules-based order.” Marles praised the Australian Army personnel involved in facilitating the delivery, stating: “I was pleased to meet the Australian Army personnel who helped facilitate the delivery of these tanks from Australia to Ukraine.” Australia is only country in the Western world that has a surplus of export-configured Abrams tanks, with Poland, which is the only other Western country to have ordered the vehicles, having begun receiving them only in the 2020s. This places Canberra in a unique position to be able to supply the vehicles.

Plans to supply Abrams tanks were first announced by Canberra in October 2024, although a number of sources subsequently reported that a lack of authorisation from the United States to transfer them to Ukraine was a major factor delaying their delivery. Unlike the 31 newly built Abrams tanks previously transferred by the United States, the 49 additional tanks from Australia have already seen decades of service and are considered throughly worn out, which is expected to significantly reduce their availability rates and increase maintenance requirements. Speaking to ABC News, one informed American source with inside knowledge of the transfer warned on this basis that the Ukrainian Army would find the vehicles “difficult to sustain.” The survivability of the Abrams in Ukraine has also been brought to question, with the vehicles having suffered very high rates of attrition. By early June 2025 the Ukrainian Army wasassessed to have lost 87 percent of the American sourced tanks with 27 of the 31 vehicles destroyed or captured.