Citing an unnamed US official, The New York Times reported that five Abrams tanks in Ukraine have been destroyed by Russian drone strikes in recent months.

Two US defense officials told the Associated Press (AP) that Ukraine has removed US-supplied Abrams tanks from the battlefield due to Russian drone tactics in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

A defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said because of the numerous Russian drones flying over Ukraine, "there are no open spaces where you can move tanks without fear of being detected."

Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed the withdrawal of the tanks from the battlefield. "When you think about how the war is going, in a battlefield where there are heavily armored vehicles (tanks), that kind of air defense system (drones) is risky for you," he told the AP.

The US agreed to send 31 M1A1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine in January last year, months after Ukraine asked for advanced weapons to counter a Russian offensive. Ukraine received its first delivery of the tanks in September last year.

But as Ukraine planned, the circumstances of the war have changed a lot.

According to Russian state media, an M1 Abrams tank was destroyed by a Russian drone near Avdivka in eastern Ukraine in February.

Citing an unnamed US official, The New York Times reported that five Abrams tanks in Ukraine have been destroyed by Russian drone strikes in recent months. Austrian military instructor Markus Reisner said at least three other tanks were well damaged.

Christopher Grady said the Abrams tanks are still important and the US and Ukraine will determine how best to use them. He said, the United States will work with Ukraine to redefine the strategy.

Drones have made a significant contribution to the war in Ukraine. A NATO official told Foreign Policy earlier this month that Ukraine has been able to disable two-thirds of Russian tanks with drone strikes. But Ukraine has also been the victim of similar drone attacks.

Although it has a record of defeating Soviet-made armored vehicles, Abrams tanks are vulnerable to antitank mines, missiles, artillery and drones. Earlier, Ukraine's Leopard and Challenger tanks were destroyed in such attacks.