Ukrainian soldiers themselves do not want to use Western heavy equipment because of this alleged weakness, the Russian president believes
Ukrainian troops are reluctant to make use of the heavy equipment supplied by Western backers, as it has become a liability for them, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.
Western tanks are a priority target for Russian forces, and burn more fiercely when hit than the Soviet-made equivalents, the president told the Rossiya 24 TV channel.
Russian troops have destroyed a total of 311 Ukrainian tanks since June 4, Putin said, adding that “at least a third of them, I believe, were Western-made tanks, including Leopards.”
“I can say that Ukrainian servicemen often refuse to get into those [Western] tanks because they are a top priority target for our guys and are being destroyed first on the battlefield. And they burn like the rest – probably even better than… the Soviet-made ones like T-72,”…