[TheDrive] Another round of U.S. military aid for Ukraine will, for the first time, include Armored Vehicle Launched Bridges, or AVLBs. This vehicle, which is derived from the Cold War-era M60 Patton tank, can deploy a folding bridge to help friendly forces, including tanks and other heavy armor, cross waterways and other obstacles like trench lines. The announcement that the Ukrainian military is now set to get AVLBs comes as its Western partners have already been working to transfer more modern Western tanks and other heavy armored vehicles.
The Pentagon announced the new tranche of aid containing the AVLBs, as well as 227mm artillery rockets, 155mm and 105mm artillery shells, 25mm automatic cannon ammunition, demolition munitions, and other items, earlier today. The entire package is valued at approximately $400 million and is what is known as a 'drawdown,' meaning that its contents will come straight from the U.S. military's own stocks.
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