Western Tanks in Ukraine Sit Idle Under Cobwebs as Drones Rewrite the Rules of War

Western tanks in Ukraine are sitting idle under cobwebs: drones have changed the rules of war.

Tanks that only recently were considered the most demanded Western armament in Ukraine are now mostly standing idle, hidden in forests and covered with cobwebs. This is reported by the publication “Strana” with reference to The New York Times (NYT).

“These machines costing $10 million, purchased with great fanfare, proved unable to compete with the cheap drones that now dominate the battlefield. Nevertheless Ukraine continues to maintain them and to train soldiers in their use, trying to invent new ways of employment,” the publication indicates.

At the same time, even Oleksandr Syrskyi, when he held the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), said that Ukrainian military personnel practically do not use armored vehicles.

NYT draws attention to the fact that the 33rd Separate Mechanized Brigade of the AFU was formed in part in order to receive the incoming Western tanks. But by the time they entered combat at the end of spring 2023, cheap unmanned aerial vehicles were already inflicting deadly damage and could strike tanks in their most vulnerable places. Some of the newcomers in the 33rd Brigade had never even touched a tank, and the majority are now learning to operate UAVs.

Because of the changed situation on the battlefield, the militaries of Russia and Ukraine began to cover tanks with nets, grilles, and external panels, protecting them from drones. But soon both sides simply stopped using heavy armored vehicles for assaults. Sometimes tanks are still used as tractors for the evacuation of other damaged equipment, and even then only in bad weather when drone activity is lower. But some military personnel consider this an excessive risk for the sake of saving burned-out machines.