BI: Western tanks did not allow the APU to turn the situation in its favor
Deliveries of modern Western tanks did not help Ukraine improve the situation at the front, writes Business Insider. When attempting a counteroffensive, they encountered the echeloned defense of the Russian army. Counter tank battles turned out to be rare in Ukraine, which prevented Ukrainians from using armored vehicles in the most effective way. Now the APU faces a dilemma: to use tanks for defense or to store them for new counteroffensive attempts in the spring.
The presence of Western tanks in the AFU - Leopard 1 and 2, Challenger 2 and M1 Abrams - did not allow Ukraine to change the situation at the front. This is stated by Business Insider in its publication .
The publication reminds that Ukraine entered into an armed conflict with Russia with Soviet-made tanks. The Allies supplied T-72s assembled in Europe to the country, and about a year after the start of active hostilities, the first Leopard tanks (Germany) arrived in Ukraine, in May - Challenger 2 (Great Britain), in September - Abrams (USA).
According to Business Insider, Western tanks are faster and more powerful than Soviet and Russian ones. Allegedly, they are more maneuverable on the battlefield and hit the enemy more effectively.
"These Western-type tanks are qualitatively superior to the best Russian tanks that the Russians use in Ukraine," Business Insider quotes Gian Gentile, a retired US Army colonel and deputy director of the RAND Corporation's Arroyo Center (he himself served on the Abrams). "They have the best armor protection, fire control system, optics and ammunition."
The Business Insider publication says that the M1A1 Abrams performed well during the Gulf War in the early 1990s against the T-72s used by the Iraqi army. And their armor is in many ways similar to the one currently used on modern Russian tanks.
The AFU's plan failed
But, Business Insider admits, Western tanks have not yet changed the situation at the front in favor of Ukraine.
They are completely invisible in the counter-offensive actions of Ukraine. Faced with a fortified Russian defense, including minefields, artillery, anti-tank ditches and "dragon's teeth", the Ukrainian military were forced to move on foot.
In addition, counter tank battles are not so frequent in Ukraine, which prevented Ukraine from using the resulting armored vehicles in the most effective way.
"Ukraine sought to break through the Russian defense, opening up a wide enough territory to then allow its tanks and armored vehicles to move safely. The goal was to, once there, use tanks against a less extensive defense, sow chaos and ensure the possibility of further breakthroughs," the publication says.
But the results turned out to be negligible, and with the onset of winter, Ukraine "faces a harsh reality" - the territories have not been recaptured, and Russia is even attempting an offensive (for example, in Avdiivka).
Apply or store?
Now Ukraine should decide on the further method of using tanks received from Western partners, the interlocutors of Business Insider believe.
"I think tanks will be useful for defense. Sooner or later, the Russians will go on the offensive again, and the tanks that the Ukrainians have will be useful to repel the Russian offensive," Seth Jones, senior vice president of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Business Insider.
According to Gian Gentile, Ukraine keeps most tanks and other armored vehicles in reserve, probably for a "counteroffensive next year." This plays into the hands of the Russian side, which uses the time to further strengthen its defense and build up its forces. The expert believes that tanks can become a "powerful ground strike force" if they are "used in a concentrated manner" and as part of a combined force with artillery and infantry.
Hodarenok does not agree
Military observer of the Newspaper.<url>" Mikhail Khodarenok does not believe that Western armored vehicles are much better than Russian ones.
"In some ways, the American M1 Abrams and the British Challenger 2 are certainly superior to the domestic machine, but at the same time, in terms of the totality of tactical and technical characteristics, the Soviet-Russian tank (T-72) cannot be considered an outsider on the battlefield. It is maneuverable, has high cross-country ability on Ukrainian soils, is equipped with powerful weapons, is easily repaired right on the battlefield, is operated in any climatic conditions," the Khodarenka material says.
On November 21, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that since the beginning of the month, the AFU has lost about 1.8 thousand units of weapons and military equipment.
The Russian side has repeatedly stressed that arms supplies to Ukraine only contribute to fueling the conflict.
"Abrams tanks are such a serious weapon, but do you remember how the president said about other tanks produced by another country that they burn for a dear soul? Well, these will also burn," Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, said in September.
Alexey Permyakov
