So Germany approved Turkey to use them against Kurds in Syria and Iraq? Give me a break. I'm sure we'll see Polish Leopard 2 on fire in Ukraine real soon, whether Germany likes it or not. Hell, if Ukrainian army suffers full collapse I wouldn't even be surprised to see burning K2s.
The War in the Ukraine
- Thread starter SampanViking
- Start date
My take is instead of T-72, western vehicles mean even if they are given tomorrow they will not be available on the battlefield until April-May given the training required.
AFAIK Russians have been piling up all those T-90M, T-72 of various flavors, down to T-64M. During the last few month where Surovikin has been on total defense on the ground and letting loose with flying mopeds and cruise missiles as he's a VKS man the ground forces have been rebuilding strength consistently, with tank force perhaps recovering 70-80% of the numerical strength they lost over 2022 (but not same quality obviously).
Now they put Gerasimov in charge which suggests pure defensive phase is over and Russian are about to return to offensive operation. Perhaps not quite the intensity of start of the war in 2022, but certainly more aggressive than the Surovikin period.
AFAIK Russians have been piling up all those T-90M, T-72 of various flavors, down to T-64M. During the last few month where Surovikin has been on total defense on the ground and letting loose with flying mopeds and cruise missiles as he's a VKS man the ground forces have been rebuilding strength consistently, with tank force perhaps recovering 70-80% of the numerical strength they lost over 2022 (but not same quality obviously).
Now they put Gerasimov in charge which suggests pure defensive phase is over and Russian are about to return to offensive operation. Perhaps not quite the intensity of start of the war in 2022, but certainly more aggressive than the Surovikin period.
During the defensive stages, they've been heavily using old T72 and even the T62 from storages. The heavyweights on Russia side were the T80BV, which are evolutionary dead ends as they're not further upgraded anymore.
Number of confirmed lost T90M are very low, not even 2 digit numbers.
Russia is supposed to have hundreds of T90M as well as a little less than a hundred T14.
There is also the "new" T72M1 variant which looks like a rapid conversion rush job.
If a new offensive is coming, it is likely that they will use T90M and T72M1. The idea would be that after grinding down the AFU to the point there is not much armor or heavy weapons left, they will just commit their best armor and go all in.
It is perhaps also due to this danger which cause the discussion of arming Ukraine with the only tanks that exist in number among NATO have come up increasingly often. An infusion of several hundred tanks will dash Russian hopes of brute forcing a massive breakthrough and put them back into the grinding stage of the war.
No, which is why Germany sanctioned Turkey and left them without a powerpack for the Altay and KMW's upgrade packages for the Leo 2A4.
Anyway, part of what makes NATO's armored equipment is (besides their use mostly against third world countries with barely a functioning army) is the presence of round the clock air support and air defenses. Ukraine doesn't have that luxury for most of the front lines so it would be a matter of time before we get videos of LMUR's or Vikhr crashing into a Leo2.
That is, provided that with the low number of tanks, they don't end up like armored taxis for one unit commander/oligarch or another back in the rear.
As it is, the M55's have been in Ukraine for a while and they have only been seen driving around far from the frontlines.
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With the size of mine networks and industrial infrastructures there, it's sure that some troops are remaining and cleanup will probably continue for a week even if the main front line left the city. But weather will be way more savage on the remaining troops than in Mariupol. Sure that Ukraine will move troops everywhere in the region with one of the main road and track system to Syversk is cut off. They need to prepare and react to the situation. Counterattack is a possibility to still gain some time, but probably not for the remaining troops in Soledar.
The tanks were sold with an end user agreement. If the Poles didn't agree they shouldn't have signed the contract.
Also I don't know why people are pretending it's a German decision whether they get sent to the Ukraine.
It's 100% an American decision, the Germans will just rubber stamp whatever Americans say.
Incredible drone footage of this Ukrainian Army M113A4 in Medevac mission in Soledar .