*How many Western-made tanks has Ukraine lost in the first seven weeks of its long-anticipated southern counteroffensive?*
*That entirely depends on how many damaged tanks the Ukrainians can repair—or get their allies to repair for them. If Kyiv’s forces or friends can fix up every tank analysts have counted as damaged, losses of Leopard 2 tanks might total … three.*
*Considering that Ukraine’s allies so far have delivered 95 tanks, that’s not bad. The low loss rate mostly is attributable to the survivability of Western tank designs. It’s not all that difficult to immobilize a German Leopard 2, British Challenger 2 or American M-1. It however is hard to destroy one.*
*Whereas Russian tanks store their shells under their turrets and tend to burst like firecrackers when hit, Western tanks usually keep their ammunition in special compartments designed to vent outward in the event of a secondary explosion. That tends to preserve a damaged vehicle’s overall integrity.*
*As long as Ukraine has access to repair facilities, its slowly-growing arsenal of European and American tanks should endure. And thanks to a recent agreement between the governments of Poland and Germany, access to facilities is getting easier.*
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**Paywall, but here is the first half,**
*How many Western-made tanks has Ukraine lost in the first seven weeks of its long-anticipated southern counteroffensive?*
*That entirely depends on how many damaged tanks the Ukrainians can repair—or get their allies to repair for them. If Kyiv’s forces or friends can fix up every tank analysts have counted as damaged, losses of Leopard 2 tanks might total … three.*
*Considering that Ukraine’s allies so far have delivered 95 tanks, that’s not bad. The low loss rate mostly is attributable to the survivability of Western tank designs. It’s not all that difficult to immobilize a German Leopard 2, British Challenger 2 or American M-1. It however is hard to destroy one.*
*Whereas Russian tanks store their shells under their turrets and tend to burst like firecrackers when hit, Western tanks usually keep their ammunition in special compartments designed to vent outward in the event of a secondary explosion. That tends to preserve a damaged vehicle’s overall integrity.*
*As long as Ukraine has access to repair facilities, its slowly-growing arsenal of European and American tanks should endure. And thanks to a recent agreement between the governments of Poland and Germany, access to facilities is getting easier.*