Colonel: Russia will likely take Soviet-era BTR-60s to battle at some point
Russia has the human resources to maintain its activity on the battlefield, but the question remains how it supports this with other means, Lt. Col. Toomas Väli said on the "Ukraina stuudio" talk show. In his opinion, Russia might even send Soviet-era BTR armored personnel carriers into the war at some point.
On "Ukraina stuudio," Lt. Col. Toomas Väli discussed that Russian forces could likely sustain their infantry assaults in Ukraine for quite some time. However, modern machinery to support these assaults might become scarce for the Russian army.
"Based on public sources, there is an interesting trend observed from satellite surveillance of repair bases, counting tanks and armored vehicles. It appears they are scraping the bottom of the barrel. Most MT-LB (armored tracked vehicles) have already been removed from repair sites. There might still be some MT-LBu (amphibious armored vehicles) available. Regarding BMDs and BMPs, the infantry and airborne combat vehicles, the remaining ones in storage are likely not worth moving. I believe we will eventually see BTR-60s and BTR-70s, Soviet-era armored personnel carriers, on the battlefield," Väli said.
According to Väli, Ukraine's ammunition situation has improved as Western aid is once again reaching the battlefield.
"This aid allows Ukrainians to hold back the advancing masses. The quality of these advancing forces is notably low, with reports indicating that the quality of the Russian soldiers being sent to the front lines is extremely poor. It is claimed that the Russian Federation can mobilize around 33,000 fighters per month, but these numbers are not reflected at the front," Väli stated.
Väli noted that although drones play a significant role in the war in Ukraine, it remains largely an artillery duel.
"It's clear that the arrival of artillery ammunition in Ukraine has significantly enhanced the effectiveness of Ukrainian forces. This has also boosted Ukrainian morale. There's a big difference between having six shells a day and being able to fire at valuable targets until they are destroyed," he added.
Regarding the use of Western-promised F-16 fighter jets in Ukraine, Väli said it is currently difficult to confirm or deny their presence in combat.
"If these aircraft are in Ukraine, they might be at airfields but not yet actively deployed. The F-16 is a system of systems. For it to be used effectively, certain conditions must be met – airspace control, intelligence on enemy movements and so on. Until these conditions are met, along with the necessary armament and technical support, it makes no sense to send these planes into combat," Väli concluded.
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Editor: Merili Nael, Marcus Turovski
