Reserves of old equipment enable Russia to sustain war for another three years
While Russia lost over 3,000 tanks during the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the country still possesses a substantial stockpile of armored vehicles in its depots for use over the next few years.
As reported by Ukrinform, this information is outlined in the annual report by the British International Institute for Strategic Studies, Military Balance, as relayed by Reuters.
Ukraine has also suffered significant losses in equipment since February 2022, but Western military supplies have allowed it to maintain reserves while improving quality.
"Moscow was able to trade quality for quantity, bringing thousands of old tanks out of storage, sometimes up to 90 per month," the report states.
According to analysts, Russia's existing reserves provide grounds to believe that Moscow "potentially can endure about three more years of heavy losses and replenish tank stocks, even if they are of a lower technical level, despite the ability to produce new equipment."
It is noted that Russia has 1,750 main battle tanks in active service, ranging from outdated T-55s to modern T-80s and T-90s, with an additional 4,000 in storage.
Analysts added that Russian officials have claimed plans to resume the production of T-80 tanks.
In the report, it is also mentioned that global defense spending will increase by 9% compared to 2022 and will continue to rise.
As reported by Ukrinform, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that in the war against Ukraine, Russia has lost a significant portion of its conventional armed forces, including hundreds of aircraft, thousands of tanks, and over 300,000 military personnel.