Joining us now, CNN military
analyst, retired Major General
James Spider
Marks and CNN
senior political commentator, former
Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger.
He's a lieutenant colonel in the U.S.
Air National Guard. Spider, first to you.
What do you make of the timeline
we're learning
now on when these German leopard tanks
will start arriving in Ukraine
and the fact that the U.S.
will send
a more lethal, upgraded version
of the Abrams battle tanks?
Well, in my mind, it's all good news.
But clearly, there's
a logistical tail
associated with the deployment
and then the training necessary
to get the Ukrainian forces up
to speed and confident with these
with these main battle tanks.
Also, bear in mind,
you've got challengers from the U.K.
So you have a mix of capabilities.
You certainly have to address
the training the logistics,
the maintenance, sustainment.
But all those are considerations.
Those aren't impediments or barriers
that would lead you to a decision,
a no go decision
So I frankly am very glad
the United States has stepped forward.
Germany has stepped forward.
And all of those considerations
will be addressed.
But there will be a time lag
between this decision
and when the realization
of all those capabilities
can be maximized on the battlefield.
You're right, Adam.
Ukraine is already pushing
we understand, for even more weapons.
Very much on their wish list
include fighter jets.
Do you see that as the next step
for Western allies potentially
Yeah, I think
what we
need to understand
here is pretty much
everything Ukraine is pushed for.
It's taken a while for the U.S.
and the allies to finally agree
that they, in fact, need that stuff.
And part of
that is the United States
doesn't want to step out
too far ahead of Europe.
It's keeping this alliance together.
But I think the here's one of the biggest
untold things
that's going on in this war,
which is one of the struggles
in Eastern Europe over the past
decade or two, has been
they have old Russian equipment.
How do they move over to NATO's
standard equipment?
It's obviously very different supply
lines, very different training.
And actually,
what this war has done is flushed
a lot of that Russian equipment
in Eastern Europe into Ukraine.
They've started bringing
a lot of these Eastern European countries
back into total, NATO's standard.
And in Ukraine,
I think we have to look and recognize
Ukraine will be NATO's
standard military equipment country,
and that includes F-16s.
They have an excess capability
right now of pilots.
I have talked to these pilots.
I, in fact,
led the last effort in Congress
to begin training them
that can come here and learn the F-16.
It'll take a couple of months
because it's a very different
mission set.
And, of course, weapons system
that way they're ready
if and probably inevitably when the U.S.
and the West decide to send F-16s
that way.
Yeah, the Ukrainians have made it
abundantly clear they want the U.S.
to start supplying F-16 fighter jets.
Very important development potentially.
Indeed, Spider,
the fight is still incredibly intense
in the eastern part of Ukraine.
But are U.S.
officials right
to advise
Ukraine to cut its losses
there and prepare for renewed offensives?
Well, the
renewed offensive is going to come
And I would tell you that it will come.
It will arrive in the Donbass area
or just north in the vicinity of Kharkiv,
but will also be to bolster
the presence
that exists within the land bridge
and in the vicinity of Crimea.
Clearly, an opportunity exists
for the Ukrainians
to try to separate
those forces
along the land bridge
in the direction of Crimea.
Once you do that, you can
then hold the shoulder of one of those
and reduce the other.
You can't do it all at once.
That is the long term objective.
But taking that peninsula of Crimea
is going to be very difficult.
We're told Adam that President Biden
is considering a trip
to Europe,
possibly Poland,
to mark the anniversary
in February of Putin's invasion.
It'll be one year
next month if he takes that step.
The president.
What sort of message would hit send
if he went actually
went inside Ukraine itself?
Well, I think if he
win, it would send
a very powerful message.
I think we can't necessarily be critical
if he doesn't.
You know,
being the president of the United States
is even a
very different security threat
than any other really head of state.
And that's a big deal and a big footprint
if he actually did pull that off.
I'll tell you,
I think it would be massive.
I think it would send chills in the
in the Russian leadership.
I think it would embolden
the Ukrainian people because, look,
Ukraine has shown the will to fight.
That's the one thing we have
seen as they have
absolutely shown,
that they are willing
to fight to defend freedom.
You have somebody that's leading
the country
that leads freedom
even in times that we struggle
sometimes here
I think that sends
an extremely strong message
that we are in this.
And the psychological impact of
just going there and saying
we're going to be with you
forever
is what can give Ukraine
the fighting spirit to go through
what is going to be a pretty tough,
pretty tough few months.
Former Congressman Adam Kinzinger,
thank you very much.
Retired Major General Spider
Marks, thanks to you as well.