The Kremlin cannot rely on removing tanks from warehouses forever, because stocks of equipment are limited.

According to British intelligence, Russia produces more than 100 tanks per month. Moscow can achieve such indicators only if it removes old tanks from storage, William Albert, head of the arms control program at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said in a comment to Business Insider.

According to him, Russia is not able to produce new tanks at such a pace. However, the Kremlin cannot rely on the method of removing tanks from warehouses forever, because stocks of equipment are limited.

Defense analyst Nicholas Drummond agreed with the assertion that the Russian Federation is relying on old tanks. The Russians’ ability to produce new tanks is limited. At the same time, according to experts, some of the tanks removed from storage will be “almost museum equipment.”

However, Drummond is also skeptical that Russia can prepare 100 old tanks per month for battle. In his opinion, this figure is “not trustworthy”, based on what is known about Russian tank production – both in the production of new tanks and in the repair of old ones.

It is noted that Russia switched to using older tank models with modernization after Ukraine destroyed a lot of Russian equipment in the first months of the invasion. Supplying older tank models to the occupiers “smacks of absolute desperation,” Alberc says. According to him, these tanks are unlikely to be a significant help for Russia in its attacks, since they are not very powerful.

“If I get a bunch of T-62s and T-64s and they tell me to attack a Ukrainian position, then no, that doesn’t make me more reckless. It makes me desperate,” he explained.

At the same time, the director of the American think tank Defense Priorities, Rajan Menon, takes a different position. He says even these old tanks could still pose a problem for Ukraine.

“Every time the Russians attack in waves, the Ukrainians have to spend ammunition to repel this attack, and their supplies run out,” the expert added.

Production of tanks in the Russian Federation

Military-political observer of the Information Resistance group Alexander Kovalenko says that today there is almost no production of new tanks in Russia. According to him, Moscow’s statements about increasing tank production by 560% are nothing more than manipulations with wording.

The expert emphasized that today almost 90% of the efforts of the Russian military-industrial complex fall on the “restoration” and “modernization” of old weapons.