The M60 series of tanks was part of an evolution that began in the closing days of World War II. The tanks steadily improved and soldiered on, in their final form, until the advent of the M1 Abrams.

As part of a $400 million military assistance package announced on March 3, the United States is supplying Ukraine with its first M60 Pattons, a classic American Cold War tank. But while regular M60s ...