Iraq To Receive 140 Abrams Tanks: U.S.

Iraq To Receive 140 Abrams Tanks: U.S.

(NSI News Source Info) BAGHDAD - March 8, 2009: Iraq will receive 140 Abrams battle tanks from the United States to bolster its forces, the U.S. Army said March 7. The Iraqi army had taken "a major step in the force modernization of its armored units with the recent procurement of 140 M1A1SA Abrams main battle tanks," a statement said.

The Iraqi Army has requested 140 M1A1M tanks as of 2009. 700 may be planned. The tanks were due to arrive over 18 months in groups of 35. The M1 Abrams is a main battle tank produced in the United States. The M1 is named after General Creighton Abrams, former Army Chief of Staff and Commander of US military forces in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972. It is a well armed, heavily armored, and highly mobile tank designed for modern armored ground warfare. Notable features of the M1 Abrams include the use of a powerful gas turbine engine, the adoption of sophisticated composite armor, and separate ammunition storage in a blow-out compartment for crew safety. It is one of the heaviest tanks in service, weighing in at close to 70 short tons. Iraqi troops would begin training with U.S. officers to operate the tanks in December 2010, the statement added. It gave no detail about whether the United States had sold or given the tanks to the Baghdad government. Before the ouster of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, the Iraqi army had a fleet of mostly aging Russian T-72 tanks. On Jan. 1, some 260,000 Iraqi soldiers took over control of security operations in Iraq alongside the police after the UN mandate governing U.S.-led forces deployed in the country expired. Most U.S. troops are due to be withdrawn from Iraq within 18 months.