Representational image. AFP
New Delhi: Russia is estimated to have lost nearly half of its best tanks during its invasion of Ukraine and is now struggling to replace them, according to a UK based research centre, as Kyiv prepares to receive modern battle tanks from the West.
In its annual Military Balance report, the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) claimed that Moscow’s pre-invasion fleet of modern T-72B3 and T-72B3M main battle tanks had been hit hard, with a loss rate of up to 50 percent.
The figures, which cover the period from the start of the conflict to the end of November, are largely based on open source images taken by satellites, drones, and soldiers on the ground.
Henry Boyd, research fellow at the IISS, told Reuters, “They’re producing and reactivating nowhere near enough to compensate for those loss rates. Their current armoured fleet at the front is about half the size it was at the start of the war.”
According to John Chipman, director general of the IISS, Moscow has been forced to “rely on its older stored weapons” due to “slow” production of newer models. This means that are relying on tanks from the Soviet era.
Chipman also said, “Russia’s actions over the past year have raised questions not only over the competence of its military and senior military leadership, but also over command cohesion.”
The overoptimism by Russia’s military meant that it suffered significant tank losses at the start of the conflict, particularly in Kyiv, where a large number of tanks and combat vehicles were destroyed on roads. As the assault failed, numerous others were captured or towed away by tractors.
According to The Guardian, there hasn’t been much evidence of an improvement in tank tactics, and it’s estimated that more than a dozen tanks have been destroyed in battle since late January in an effort to take the Donbas town of Vuhledar. Ukraine has been able to destroy tanks by using reconnaissance drones.
Ukraine expects to receive Western tanks and combat vehicles in the coming months, which it intends to use to achieve a battlefield breakthrough.
Around 100 modern Western tanks, including the US Abrams, the German Leopard, and the British Challenger, have been promised to Kyiv. These vehicles are far more capable than the more traditional Russian tanks.
Ben Barry, land warfare expert at the IISS, told Reuters that Russia is going to find it difficult to concentrate enough credible and competent force to push the Ukrainians back much.
But he also stated, “it’s not clear to me that Kyiv has enough combat power to rapidly eject Russian forces. We can expect another bloody year.”
With inputs from agencies
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