Ukraine claims that Russia can't build or repair tanks any more because Western sanctions deprived it of components
Russian tank production has stalled for lack of "foreign-made components," Ukraine said Monday.
The post by Ukraine's Armed Forces suggests that Western sanctions are beginning to bite.
Insider was unable to verify the claim which, if true, would be a big problem for Russia's invasion.
Ukrainian officials claimed on Monday that Russia is unable to repair ts tanks or make new ones because of the impact of international sanctions.
A Facebook post by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said that work had halted at two Russian factories "due to the lack of receipts of foreign-made components." Insider was unable to verify the claim.
The two companies, Uralzavod Corporation and Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant, "specialize in the manufacture and repair of tanks and other armored vehicles for the needs of the armed forces of the Russian Federation," the Ukrainian post said.
The state-owned Uralzavod is Russia's sole military tank manufacturer, according to the European Union. The bloc announced sanctions against a raft of Russian entities, including the company, on March 15. The modern T-72B3 tank produced there has been deployed in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the bloc said.
It is one of the world's largest tank manufacturers, according to the UK's foreign ministry, which announced sanctions on the plant at the outbreak of war. Japan has also sanctioned the company, according to Russian news agency TASS.
The US sanctioned the company in 2014 after Russia's annexation of Crimea.
It is not immediately clear which Russian military vehicles use Western-made parts. If Ukraine's claim is correct, then the tank-production problems would be another obstacle in Russia's invasion.
"Occupying troops operating in Ukraine are in dire need of repairing and rebuilding damaged weapons and military equipment," the Ukrainian Army post said.
President Vladimir Putin denied in a March 17 address that overwhelming international sanctions on Russia had taken much of a toll.
The invasion is deemed by US and UK military intelligence to have "largely stalled" in the face of staunch Ukrainian opposition — plus logistical problems presented by equipment getting stuck in the field, as Task and Purpose reported.
Ukrainian propaganda efforts have made extensive use of videos appearing to show the capture and destruction of Russian tanks. Much Western military aid has been in the form of modern anti-tank weapons like the NLAW or Javelin missile launchers.
According to Oryx, an open-source project that documents military losses, Russia has lost 1,670 military vehicles in Ukraine since its invasion began. The project has documented the destruction or capture of 81 of Russia's T-72B3 tanks.
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