Poland indicates how many T-72s it delivered to Ukraine and the tank that will replace them

@DefAviation ES 7·15·2022 · 20:16 0

In addition to hosting millions of refugees, Poland is one of the countries that has given the most military aid to Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion.

K2 Black Panther: this is the advanced main battle tank that Poland is considering buying
The tanks that the UK plans to send to Poland in order to deliver T-72 to Ukraine

Poland has delivered to Ukraine more than 240 T-72

To make matters worse, Poland is the country that has offered the most military aid to Ukraine in proportion to its resources. One of the most notable aspects of that aid has been the delivery of modernized T-72 tanks. At the beginning of May we talked here about the possible delivery of 230 tanks of this type, but the figure has never been clear, since the Polish government preferred to keep a certain reserve in this regard, for security reasons. Today the Polish radio station Polskie Radio 24 has pointed out that in reality there were more than 240 T-72s delivered by Poland to Ukraine, so that the Polish Army's armored fleet would currently have the following tanks:

• 105 Leopard 2A5, a version very similar to the Leopard 2E of the Spanish Army.
• 142 Leopard 2A4, in process of conversion to Leopard 2PL version.
• 232 PT-91 "Twardy", a modernized Polish version of the Soviet T-72M tank.
• 120 T-72M1, old soviet tanks still in service.
• About 230 T-72 in storage.

Poland will receive 116 second-hand M-1 Abrams in addition to the 250 new ones it already bought

Likewise, the Polish Defense Minister, Mariusz Błaszczak, has announced the purchase of 116 second-hand M-1 Abrams battle tanks from the US, which would be added to the 250 new Abrams already purchased by Poland and whose sale was authorized by USA in February. Błaszczak pointed out that an agreement has been reached with the US government for the delivery of those 116 Abrams, and deliveries will begin in early 2023. The minister has not indicated whether Poland will buy those battle tanks or whether it is a donation by the US to supply the T-72 delivered by Poland to Ukraine.

At the moment it is not known which variant of the M-1 Abrams will be among those 116 second-hand tanks. What can be concluded is that after its delivery, Poland will be the world's fourth largest user of the Abrams, after the US, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Likewise, the acquisition of these battle tanks will mean that the Polish Army will have one of the largest and most modern armored parks in NATO, surpassing countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Spain. It is a situation to which the Slavic country is pushed after the threats launched two months ago by the Russian Duma against Poland, pointing it out as the next country to invade.

No news on the possible purchase of the K2 Black Panther from South Korea

On the other hand, Poland has not yet confirmed the possible purchase of K2 Black Panther tanks from South Korea that was raised a month ago, with a view to replacing the old Polish T-72. Until a few months ago, Poland had 590 T-72s, between those in operation and those in storage, so the arrival of those 116 second-hand M-1 Abrams does not exclude the purchase of the South Korean tank.