UKRAINE is unfazed by ongoing brake problems on a Bendigo-built military vehicle it wants for a northern summer that could be decisive in the war with Russia.
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The country, which came under renewed attack in February 2022, has stepped up calls for Hawkeis in with a social media campaign, including a video suggesting the heavily armoured four-wheel-drives would be "seven tons of trouble for temporary occupiers".
Ukraine will leave it to Australia to decide whether it is ready to provide Hawkeis, ambassador Vasyl Myroshnychenko said during an interview with the Advertiser.
"I don't think it's really an issue," he said of Hawkei's brake problems.
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Defence has been dealing with the latest brake issue since last November, after manufacturer Thales Australia noticed it during testing on a single vehicle.
That a problem exists has been public since at least February, when it appeared in an Australian National Audit Office report, though that report did not specify its exact nature.
The problem is understood to be different from the assisted braking system issue that triggered a safety incident at Victoria's Puckapunyal military base several years ago. That issue has since been resolved.
On Friday, Defence confirmed it and Thales are still working on a solution and that there has been no agreement to supply Hawkeis to Ukraine.
"The Australian Government is committed to delivering on its current contribution to Ukraine," a Defence spokesperson said.
Ukraine's interest in Hawkeis has been growing since another Bendigo-built vehicle entered its military's service last year.
Bushmasters - a bigger heavily armoured truck - have been roaming Ukraine in a host of guises after being shipped out of Australia a little over a year ago.
They have been confirmed to have been serving in the Bakhmut area as recently as a week-and-a-half ago.
That battle has become the bloodiest of the war.
Mr Myroshnychenko said Ukraine is keen for more equipment given that the last major Australian contribution happened about six months ago, with a smaller round last February.
"Look, Ukraine is getting ready for a counteroffensive so whatever we can get right now will be instrumental in our ability to defend democracy and repel Russians from Ukraine," he said.
Many expect that counteroffensive to become a reality as the northern spring continues and summer arrives.
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Tom O'Callaghan
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
