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Ukraine’s tanks are playing a key role in defending Avdiivka from Russian assaults.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
Tanks have generally\u00a0taken a backseat in fighting to avoid minefields and drone and artillery attacks.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
After suffering heavy armor losses, Russian forces in\u00a0Avdiivka are largely advancing on foot.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Ukrainian tanks, which have taken a backseat in fighting in recent months, are playing a key role in fending off Russian attacks around the embattled city of Avdiivka.<\/p>\n
Both Russia and Ukraine have generally been positioning their tanks behind the front line <\/u><\/a>to avoid hitting minefields and being struck by drones and artillery, Forbes reported.<\/p>\n Instead, they have been used more as long-range artillery rather than engaging in direct combat.<\/p>\n However, in Avdiivka, where Russia has been carrying out its biggest assault in months, Ukraine’s tanks have returned to the front of the fight.<\/p>\n “We hold the defense line thanks to the tanks. Tank and artillery systems are extremely important. Tank, artillery, and infantry units all work in a coordinated manner,” a Ukrainian soldier near Avdiivka told Anadolu<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n When Russia began its campaign to seize Avdiivka, its forces continuously sent armored columns to the fight and suffered heavy losses, including hundreds of tanks and other vehicles<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n A military analyst previously told Business Insider that the “disorderly” columns were vulnerable to Ukrainian attacks, and their continued use showed that Russia hadn’t learned lessons from earlier big defeats.<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n Since mid-November, it appears that Russia copied Ukraine’s counteroffensive tactics<\/u><\/a>, with soldiers leaving their vehicles behind and advancing on foot, Forbes reported.<\/p>\n In response, Ukraine has begun using its tanks as frontline fighting vehicles once again.<\/p>\n A video that circulated online this week appears to show tanks part of Ukraine’s 116th Brigade firing on attacking Russian troops, who can then be seen fleeing on foot.<\/p>\n Ukraine has deployed at least five brigades to the Avdiivka front, including one tank brigade and four mechanized brigades, which have tanks, per Forbes.<\/p>\n Russia is continuing with its assault on the city in Donetsk Oblast, despite having made marginal gains.<\/p>\n Russia has suffered heavy losses in personnel and equipment in Avdiivka, but its forces appear to be able to continuously reinforce with new recruits<\/u><\/a>, the think tank the Institute for the Study of War said.<\/p>\n While Ukraine has been suffering from manpower shortages<\/u><\/a>, Russia, which has a population over three times the size of Ukraine’s, has not had the same problem.<\/p>\n The US sent 31 advanced M1A2 Abrams tanks<\/u><\/a> to Ukraine in September \u2014 but they’ve been notably absent from the fighting.<\/p>\n Analysts told Business Insider that this is probably because it’s hard to put them to good use, citing the worsening weather and Russia’s hardcore defensive lines.<\/p>\n Ukrainian forces would be “waiting for the right moment,” probably spring, when a new offensive could be launched, <\/span>Mark Cancian, a retired US Marine Corps colonel<\/span><\/a> a senior advisor with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Business Insider last month.<\/span><\/p>\n Read the original article on Business Insider<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n