Russia Potentially Loses Half of Its Tank Fleet in Ukraine, Former President Wants Production to be Increased

Russian tanks are destroyed in Ukraine. (Wikimedia Commons/Directis

JAKARTA - Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev wants the country's tank production to be increased, as the supply of Western weapons to Ukraine increases and the possibility of many Ukrainian tanks being destroyed on the battlefield.

Visiting a tank factory in the Siberian city of Omsk on Thursday, Medvedev wanted tank production to be increased, in response to the supply of Western weapons to Ukraine.

"As we know, our enemy (Ukraine) has been begging abroad for planes, missiles, tanks. How should we respond? It is clear that in this case, it is natural for us to increase the production of various weapons including modern tanks," Medvedev said in a statement. video footage of his visit uploaded on the messaging app Telegram, reported Reuters February 10.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is known to have visited various European countries this week, in a bid to secure fighter jets and long-range weapons, which he says are necessary to defend his country from invading Russian troops.

Separate, Russia has potentially lost up to half of all its operational tank fleet since the start of the Ukraine war, according to information compiled by monitoring groups.

Illustration of a Russian tank. (Wikipedia Commons/Администрация Волгоградской области)

Oryx, an open-source intelligence website, has been gathering visual evidence of lost military equipment in Ukraine since the Russian invasion began on February 24, 2022.

The group said this week it had verified 1.000 Russian tanks lost in the war. It said another 544 Russian tanks had been captured by Ukrainian forces, 79 damaged, and 65 abandoned.

That number does not include losses that Oryx has not been able to visually confirm, said Jakub Janovsky, a military analyst who contributes to the Oryx blog. He estimated the actual number of casualties could be closer to 2.000 tanks.

"Russia started the war with about 3.000 operational tanks... so there is a good chance Russia has lost half of its serviceable tanks," Janovsky said, citing CNN.

Furthermore, just months into the war, analysts spotted a design flaw in the Russian tanks that meant one incoming attack could blow up their ammunition depot. Often, subsequent explosions destroy the turrets of Russian tanks in what is called the "jack in the box" effect.

Experts also note that Russian armor was not properly maintained before the war and some of the tanks in storage may have been taken out of service to keep those sent to the front functioning.

Janovsky said Moscow had about 4.000 tanks in reserve before the start of the war.

"On paper, Russia still has a lot of tanks, but many are poorly stored and may be difficult to reactivate quickly," he said.

Russian tank destroyed in Ukraine. (Wikimedia Commons/Міністерство внутрішніх справ України)

Even assuming they were all put into action, Moscow would still lose about 30 percent of its pre-war tank strength, Janovsky said.

Janovsky previously told CNN that building a new replacement tank would be difficult for Moscow.

"Because of the sanctions, they may have to replace sensors and electronics with less expensive alternatives, with the amount they can generate in the near future for a fraction of their losses. Those material losses... are not sustainable," he explained in September.

The total figure for Russian equipment losses – when infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and other vehicles are added to the tank – was nearly 9,100, says the Oryx website.

It is known that tanks have become the main focus of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, seen as the key for Russia or Ukraine to seize territory on the battlefield.

According to Oryx figures, the tank battle had turned the Ukrainians' course. By Oryx's count, the more than 500 tanks that Ukraine captured from the Russians, more than making up for the 459 tanks it lost.

And more tanks are on their way to Ukraine.

Since last month, Kyiv has received promises of modernized tanks from Germany, the United States, Britain and other Western partners. What's more, the tanks were seen as having superior technology than those deployed by Russia.