As of: March 22, 2024, 8:33 p.m
By: Patrick Mayer
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Press
Split
The Ukrainian armed forces are again increasingly using old tanks in the south and east of the front against Russia's invasion.
This shows Kiev's dilemma.
Zaporizhzhia - The military situation is becoming increasingly difficult for Ukraine in the war with Russia.
While the Ukrainian army eagerly awaits more Leopard 2 tanks, its positions are increasingly being bombarded by the Russian air forces with FAB free-fall bombs.
Against Vladimir Putin's troops: Ukrainian army has to relocate tanks
Last but not least, the Ukrainians are struggling with supplies of more modern Western tanks, while more and more American M1 Abrams and British Challenger 2s are left on the battlefield and Moscow autocrat Vladimir Putin's invasion troops are literally hunting down German Leopard 2 main battle tanks.
That's why the defenders in the Ukraine war are apparently increasingly forced to move their remaining NATO tanks back and forth at the front.
Between east and south over many kilometers.
This is suggested by video recordings by the Ukrainian army, which they shared on X (formerly Twitter).
Weapons for Ukraine: Leopard 2, M1 Abrams, Challenger – many tanks lost
This means that tanks are always sent flexibly to where there is the most fire.
This costs time and fuel, and it is just one of many indications that Kiev's armed forces are now increasingly lacking not only ammunition but also heavy combat equipment in order to be able to robustly withstand the Russian onslaught.
Bitter: As the US magazine
Foreign Affairs
reported at the end of January, the Ukrainian ground troops had allegedly lost 26 “Leos” by then – out of (at least) 76 Leopard 2s delivered from various NATO states such as Germany.
However, as the much-quoted Dutch open source website
Oryx
wrote at the beginning of March, the tank losses up to that point included 17 Leopard 2A4s and twelve Leopard 2A6s.
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M-55S from Slovenia: Ukraine army increasingly relies on hybrid tanks
According to the Ukrainian portal
Defense Express,
around two Challenger 2 main battle tanks from Great Britain were lost due to enemy action by mid-March.
Five other Challengers apparently cannot be repaired or maintained due to a lack of spare parts.
London delivered a total of 14 copies.
This is also why the Ukrainians are increasingly relying on the so-called M-55S hybrid tanks from Slovenia.
Ljubljana had already provided a total of 28 copies of the M-55S at the end of 2022.
What's special: The tank combines the hulls and turrets of Soviet T-55 tanks from the 1950s with modern Israeli fire control systems and a classic British 105-millimeter L7 main gun.
As the American news magazine
Forbes
writes about the Ukrainians' video, one thing stands out: In the fall, the M-55S were still in use with the well-known 47th mechanized brigade "Magura" in the east of the battered country, for example in the Avdiivka area in Donbass.
Against Russia: Ukraine no longer has enough tanks for several units
The 127th Brigade, which shared the video, holds the front line south of Zaporizhia and west of Orikhiv, not far from the Kakhovka reservoir - i.e. in the south of Ukraine.
The video shows something else: The soldiers apparently use the tank as a kind of howitzer.
This means that you shoot at distant targets with individual tanks and avoid direct confrontation.
Probably also because there are no longer enough tanks available to form combat units with several vehicles at several points on the front.
Gaps were actually supposed to be closed with a huge weapons package consisting of the 1960s Leopard 1A5 from the German arms industry.
The Federal Ministry of Defense, in cooperation with the Danes and Dutch, actually wanted to provide the Ukrainian army with 80 units by the end of 2023.
However, as of March 22nd, only 30 “Leos” 1 have been delivered.
(pm)