US Authorities Say Russia Likely Lost More Than Half of Its Main Battle Tanks

The latest Russian tank TM-90M and operators training across Ukraine.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] A U.S. Department of Defense official revealed that Russia, which has been waging war by invading Ukraine since February last year, appears to be suffering from a severe shortage of weapons, having recently lost half of its main tanks.

According to major foreign media on the 10th (local time), Celeste Wallander, U.S. Department of Defense Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Security, stated during an online discussion hosted by the think tank Center for a New American Security (CNAS) that "It appears that half of Russia's main tank inventory has been lost in combat or captured by Ukrainian forces."

Deputy Assistant Secretary Wallander had not previously disclosed exact information on the scale of Russia's tank losses, but made this remark ahead of Western support for Ukrainian tanks from the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and others. The U.K. plans to deploy Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine as early as next month, and Germany and Poland plan to provide a total of about 100 Leopard 2 tanks. The U.S. has also pledged to support 31 Abrams M1 tanks.

Wallander said, "Russia's ground forces capability has been severely degraded," adding, "Casualties are expected to number in the tens of thousands." The U.S. Department of Defense estimates that 80% of Russia's ground forces have been mobilized for the invasion of Ukraine.

However, he also warned that caution should not be relaxed as Russia has a foundation in the defense industry. Deputy Assistant Secretary Wallander emphasized that although Russia is forced to mobilize slower and fewer technological capabilities due to Western sanctions, it is nonetheless continuing weapons production.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.