IN WITH THE OLD

Desperate Putin Forced to Pull 1970s Tanks from ‘Graveyard’ as Modern Stocks Run Dry

Russia is now relying on Soviet-era tanks to fend off a Ukrainian resurgence.

Vladimir Putin is pulling rusty old Soviet-era tanks from the scrapheap as modern stocks of his war machines run low. T-80s and T-72As are being retrieved from so-called tank graveyards to replenish numbers on the frontline. The T-72A was first introduced in 1979 as an improved version of the original T-72, but its use has dwindled over the years. The Soviet-made tank is now mainly deployed by developing countries and militant groups. The T-80 is even older, having been introduced in 1976. However, according to analysis by open-source intelligence (OSINT), the old sluggers are staging a comeback, mostly because Putin’s modern weaponry stocks are dwindling. Decommissioned Soviet tanks are kept in storage, dubbed tank graveyards. But battlefield losses mean that the Russian armed forces are now patching them up and sending them back out to the frontlines. “Based on recent signs at major tank storage bases like the 349th that hold T-72As, it appears Russia is prepping them to bring them back to service,” an OSINT researcher wrote on X. The 349th base is a storage facility in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, where large stocks of old weaponry are held.

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Leigh KimminsReporter

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