MOSCOW/KYIV – A devastating new analysis reveals Russia’s military is on the brink of an unprecedented crisis, facing a “catastrophic shortage of armored vehicles” that is crippling its combat effectiveness and forcing troops into horrifying, unprotected “meat assaults” using everything from jeeps to golf carts! With thousands of tanks and fighting vehicles obliterated in Ukraine and production unable to keep pace, experts warn that the Kremlin’s ground army is effectively “naked” on the battlefield.
New reports, including from the National Security Journal, paint a grim picture for Moscow. Despite aggressive recruitment, Russia’s defense industry simply cannot produce new tanks and fighting vehicles fast enough to replace the staggering battlefield losses, which are now estimated to exceed 15,000 units. This colossal attrition rate is creating a gaping chasm between the equipment needed at the front lines and what Russia’s factories can actually deliver.
From Soviet Titans to Scrap Metal:
For the initial years of the war, Russia relied heavily on vast Soviet-era stockpiles to replace its losses. Warehouses once brimming with tens of thousands of old tanks and armored vehicles were systematically emptied, with older T-72s, T-62s, and even T-55s (dating back to the 1950s) being pulled from storage, refurbished, and rushed to the front.
But those reserves are now critically depleted! Satellite analysis reportedly shows that much of what remains in these storage yards are vehicles that haven’t moved in years, effectively little more than scrap metal, too costly to refurbish.
“Unarmored civilian vehicles loaded with Russian infantry racing toward Ukrainian positions is now becoming a common sight,” one report chillingly states. Russian units are resorting to desperate measures, flooding the front lines with cars, vans, all-terrain vehicles, and even motorcycles, turning soldiers into vulnerable targets.
Human Waves and Demographics:
This severe equipment deficit is directly translating into massive infantry losses. Without armored vehicles to shield them, troops are being deployed in “human wave attacks,” a brutal, attritional tactic reminiscent of World War II, but without the numerical superiority Russia once enjoyed.
Ukrainian General Staff reports show staggering daily losses for Russian personnel, with over a million killed or wounded since the full-scale invasion began. This, combined with the catastrophic equipment shortages, is not just a tactical setback; analysts warn it’s accelerating a long-term population collapse for Russia.
The implications are clear: Russia’s ability to conduct large-scale, rapid armored maneuvers is crippled. As the conflict grinds on, most Russian soldiers will likely continue fighting on foot, exposed and without protection, a stark testament to the profound crisis now engulfing Moscow’s once formidable military.
