Army Tanks Slowly Going Green in Europe

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June 22, 2017 | Originally published by Date Line: June 22 on

After years of combat in the Middle East, the U.S. Army still clings to its desert-colored M1 Abrams tanks and combat vehicles.

This became a challenge for Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, commander of U.S. Army Europe, when hundreds of M1s began flowing into Europe”s woodland landscape to deter Russian aggression.

Hodges recalled watching video with an Air Force friend of tanks arriving in Europe.

“I was like check that out — U.S. Army, nobody in the world can do that except the U.S. Army,” Hodges told an audience at a recent Association of the United States Army breakfast.

“And he goes, ”Why is it tan?”

“I said, ”What do you mean?” And he said, ”Nothing says transient like a tan tank in Europe,” ” Hodges recalled, adding that green has become “a strategic communications element for us.”