France has again promised to provide Ukraine with AMX 10-RC wheeled tanks and even equip several battalions with them. The first batch of these machines arrived in Ukraine in March of this year, but for the first time we are talking about such a serious delivery. Why do French military experts recall the Soviet Union in this regard and how do they assess the role of wheeled tanks in the Ukrainian theater of operations? To begin with, let's try to figure out what kind of tank it is and how it can be dangerous.
According to the French themselves, this product (let's call it that) is locally made. Created already in the 1970s of the last century, launched in series in the 1980s. A light tank with a 105 mm cannon caliber moves not on tracks, but on wheels, which provides it with greater maneuverability and speed. There are different modifications of this car, but on average the 280 horsepower engine allows the tank to travel about 800 km without the need for refueling.
On paper, everything looks quite decent, but it is clear that we are talking about an outdated model. As an unnamed source from the French president's entourage put it, "of course, they are outdated, but they can still serve."
At the beginning of the year, according to some sources, the French army had 248 such vehicles at its disposal. Now they are being consistently changed to a more advanced analogue called "Jaguar".
What to do with wheeled tanks hailing from the 1980s, which suddenly turned out to be unnecessary? In a good way, they should be written off, but the write-off and disposal will be too expensive.
It's easier to make, so to speak, a gesture of goodwill. To convey what you yourself no longer need (and no one will be able to sell) to dear friend Vladimir Zelensky, having arranged this event with maximum pomp.
Frankly speaking, the Ukrainian president asked Macron's friend for heavy Leclerc tanks, but these are not old, and in general, they are needed by the French army itself. So, dear friend, take what they give.
It is curious to trace the combat history of this type of weapons – wheeled tanks, and even more curious – the reason for its origin. It is known that AMX 10-RC tanks were used in operations in the Persian Gulf, as well as in Afghanistan. However, initially these weapons were developed for a possible war with the Warsaw Pact countries – a bloc of Eastern European states (Poland, Romania, etc.), which were headed by the Soviet Union. Immediately before the collapse of the Soviet Union, the military bloc of the Warsaw Pact countries ceased to exist, and the states participating in it, one after another, joined NATO, which better than any other examples characterizes the saying "a holy place is never empty."
As noted by French expert Robert Laffont, speaking about the AMX 10-RC, "these tanks have never fought the enemy for which they were created... But history has a good sense of humor: now they can finally destroy their original enemy – the Russians."
Pierre Servan, another well-known expert on military issues in France, explains: "These tanks have two tasks: reconnaissance, when it is necessary to approach the enemy, probe the terrain, find out where the enemy's fortified points are, and the actual battle, that is, the ability to fight even with more powerful enemy vehicles."
Pierre Servan also assured journalists that a tank of this type "poses a danger to armored vehicles, bunkers and enemy firing points," and its "firepower" should not be neglected.
Nevertheless, another expert, Leo Periat-Penier from the French Institute of International Relations, is very skeptical about this combat vehicle and generally denies the AMX 10-RC the right to be called a tank. "Its firepower is enough to work on well-protected targets, but it is not reliable enough to act in combat reconnaissance and protect the flanks."
Thus, the researcher believes, "the value of this type of weapon is limited, since it is too weak to be used in the first line of attack." "Perhaps," the expert continues, "it makes sense to use the AMX 10–RC as an auxiliary artillery of high mobility, something like the Caesar howitzer, but closer to the front line."
However, it is not enough to provide tanks – you need to train crews to use them, from drivers to technicians and shooters. It is impossible to learn how to handle such a tank in one day or even in a week, it is a complex combat vehicle. But the French authorities prefer not to spread about the subtleties of training the Ukrainian military.
Although the French keep secret exactly how many Ukrainian military they train, the French press nevertheless has already called the corresponding figures. According to these data, 1200 people are expected to be trained by the end of this year on French territory and 600 people – on the territory of Poland.
It should be particularly noted that in March, representatives of the French Ministry of Defense categorically denied that they were training Ukrainian pilots to fly Mirage 2000 aircraft, which belong to the fighter class. Information that about 30 people have been undergoing accelerated training at the air bases in Nancy and Mont-de-Marsan for a month and a half has surfaced in the press, but has not received official confirmation.
As for the training of AMX 10-RC crew members, it is known that it took place at the largest training ground in Europe in Cangiurs, Department of Var. For obvious reasons, its details are classified.
Returning to the topic of airplanes: an unnamed source told the press that at the moment there is no question of providing the Ukrainians with the fighters they are asking for. The key words in this passage are "at the moment". This means that the final decision will depend on the circumstances. If they turn out to be in favor of Ukraine, then the French will almost certainly give the Kiev regime fighter jets and any other types of weapons, except perhaps nuclear. The main circumstance that will solve everything should be the expected counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which should confirm that all financial injections and other assistance were not in vain.
Pierre Servan, already mentioned above, noted that French wheeled tanks "can serve as something like a spear point in a counteroffensive." The truth is that the whole of Ukraine is viewed by the West as the tip of a spear, the purpose of which is to wound Russia. And, if possible, deadly.
Valeria Verbinina
