EMMA HELFRICH
Numerous Cold-War era Russian T-62 tanks have been photographed at Melitopol railway station in southeastern Ukraine near the current front lines of the three-month-old conflict in the country. Whether the tanks will be used by Russian forces or turned over to local separatist groups is currently unclear, but their presence can only raise questions about Russia’s depleting armor reserves after months of significant losses.
The new development comes after rumors had spread that the Russians were pulling a number of the T-62s out of long-term storage. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Russians have 10,000 tanks and 8,500 armored vehicles in storage — although that number doesn't take into account their material condition — with about 2,500 of those being T-62s. Being that we’ve already seen Russian forces using older T-72A/B variants in Ukraine and that some of the purported 10,000 tanks in storage are likely to be more modern than T-62s, the choice to move these specific vehicles to the front is undoubtedly intriguing.
Ingen kommentarer:
Legg inn en kommentar
Merk: Bare medlemmer av denne bloggen kan legge inn en kommentar.