The highly wanted M1 Abrams and Leopard 2 tanks would be sent to Ukraine, the United States and Germany said this week.
While the UK stated this month that it will give Ukraine Challenger 2 tank, Poland is also sending Leopard 2 combat vehicles. Additional nations have pledged to provide more tanks to Ukraine or have at least shown interest in doing so.
Putin Faces Hurdle Over Russia-Ukraine War
Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, theoretically possesses a stockpile that is substantial enough to enable him to send more to the front lines as the West increases Ukraine’s own tank supplies.
The Kyiv Independent stated in September 2022 that according to the Military Balance 2021 database, there were roughly 10,200 tanks in Russian storage facilities.
But experts say that if Putin’s government actually attempted to send tanks from his arsenal to Ukraine, it would face a number of significant difficulties.
Any tanks that Russia does have in storage require skilled crews to operate them, according to Dan Soller, a former colonel in the intelligence branch of the U.S. Army.
Tens of thousands of personnel may be needed to run Russia’s estimated 10,000 tanks, which are unlikely to be entirely operational. Each tank takes several employees to operate.
According to Soller, many Russian tanks in storage have likely not been “kept adequately,” and some of them may even be utilized as spare components. The “vast majority,” in his opinion, is probably not even in use.
How many tanks Russia may remove from storage and re-enter service in Ukraine is extremely unknown, according to David Silbey, associate professor of history at Cornell University and head of teaching and learning at Cornell in Washington.
He added that there is very strong evidence that the Russian tanks in storage have not been effectively maintained and are therefore in poor condition.
It’s not like you can put money in a machine and receive a working T-72, said Silbey, referring to a particular Russian tank.
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Importance Of Tanks
The tanks themselves would need to be made operational again, in addition to any difficulties with finding sufficient trained people to operate the tanks. So even though the projected Russian stockpile may appear intimidating to Ukrainians, Silbey said, I can’t conceive that they could get those on the battlefield all that quickly.
While the Abrams deliveries are anticipated to take longer, it is anticipated that the Leopard 2 and Challenger 2 will start to arrive in Ukraine in the upcoming weeks or months.
The significance of the tanks in the conflict will depend on how well they are used in conjunction with artillery, other armored fighting vehicles, missiles, intelligence, and communications once Ukraine has deployed the tanks on the battlefield.
Soller stated that the statistics are possibly the least relevant component of this. The orchestration is very significant. Consider how a combined arms maneuver’s various components are brought together to produce the desired results on the battlefield like a symphony.
