Ambassador Anatoly Antonov’s answer to a media question
: Dear Anatoly Ivanovich, how could you comment on the “leaks” in the American media about possible shipments of M1 Abrams tanks to Kiev?
Anatoly Antonov: Throughout the Ukrainian crisis, the administration repeatedly used the technique of publishing information in the media on the eve of significant deliveries of weapons and equipment to the Kiev regime. An analysis of the entire sequence of Washington’s actions shows that the Americans are constantly raising the “bar” of military assistance to their puppet government. This is especially clear when the Russian Armed Forces gain new victories and confidently liberate the territory of Russia from the Nazi threat.
If a decision to transfer to Kiev M1 Abrams is made, American tanks without any doubt will be destroyed as all other samples of NATO military equipment.
Obviously, Washington is deliberately trying to inflict strategic defeat on us. It gives “green light” to use of American assistance for attacks on the Crimea. It covers crimes committed by radicals against population of Donbass, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. A growing number of officials and experts in America admit: it is all about U.S. “proxy-war” with our country.
If the United States decides to supply tanks, it will be impossible to justify such step using arguments about “defensive weapons”. This would be another blatant provocation against the Russian Federation. No one should have illusions about who is real aggressor in the current conflict.