How Have Ukrainians Destroyed 1,000 Russian Tanks?

By Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

(Washington DC) There is a clear, well-documented reality about the Russian war in Ukraine, Russian tanks are getting absolutely decimated.

Ukrainian anti-armor tactics, weapons, and will-to-fight halted, stopped, damaged, or completely destroyed hundreds of invading tanks during the opening months of the war.

Mass Destruction of Invading Russian Tanks

All available information suggests that the destruction of Russian tanks has continued at a rapid and even alarming pace. There are many statistical assessments that, given the well-understood information warfare variables in combat, differ greatly.

All of the estimates, however, tell a similar story, which is that Ukrainian anti-armor weapons, artillery, and tactics are destroying Russian T-72s, T-80s, and T-90s. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense reports that Ukrainians have destroyed as many as 3,702 Russian tanks, though reports from multiple news organizations such as the Wall Street Journal, Telegraph, Business Insider, and The Guardian vary considerably, generally ranging from in count between 1,000-to-2,000 Russian tanks having been destroyed.

One report in the Guardian newspaper cites the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) saying Russia’s existing tank fleet in its Army has reduced from 2,927 to 1,800, a massive 1,100 in tank losses. This count is also aligned with a Russian tank destruction assessment from Oryx open-source intelligence (cited in Sandboxx news) which notes the destruction or capture of more than 1,100 tanks. Finally, the Pentagon is also quoted as suggesting this number, having estimated that as many as 1,000 Russian tanks have been destroyed.

There has been no shortage of analysis, speculation, and factual reporting regarding the mixture of reasons why this appears to be the case. The exact combination of a number of variables may be impossible to assess, yet some of the main reasons relate to the effectiveness of anti-armor weapons such as Javelin anti-tank missiles.