The T-72 tank is an older but key weapons platform for Putin in Ukraine.
Of course, the challenge for Russia is that such old systems are getting killed daily.
And social media seems to document every single kill like clockwork.
Ukraine War Footage: More Tanks Are Dying for Putin
Video footage has emerged on social media showing the moment that Ukrainian forces took out a Russian T-72B tank in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
The clip was first shared by the Ukrainian military and later reposted to Twitter by Ukraine Weapons Tracker and a number of other Twitter-based war trackers.
The Action
The clip, recorded by a rotary-blade UAV, shows a long rural road set between agricultural fields. Several Russian tanks can be seen driving down the road. The video then cuts to the moment that one tank approaches a corner of one of the fields. The field is already littered with craters, suggesting that there had been previously attempted strikes against military vehicles in the area.
One strike misses a tank, but a second strike appears to hit a T-72B tank. While it’s hard to tell exactly how much damage was caused in the strike, as the video is obstructed by clouds of smoke and dust, the artillery strike appears to take out at least one of the Russian military vehicles.
The remaining vehicles appear to successfully disperse and escape being hit by Ukrainian artillery strikes.
The tank can be seen at the end of the clip amidst trees and bushes, engulfed in flames. At the very end of the video, the fire dies down into black smoke and the tank looks to be seriously damaged.
There’s Still More Action
According to Ukraine Weapons Tracker, the clip was recorded south of Robotyne.
“South of Robotyne, #Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the Ukrainian army destroyed a Russian T-72B tank with artillery fire,” the post reads.
#Ukraine: South of Robotyne, #Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the Ukrainian army destroyed a Russian T-72B tank with artillery fire. pic.twitter.com/3reAApVCwx
— ???????? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) June 12, 2023
The video clip also ends with the message, “Victory is coming soon, we believe in the ZSU.”
In a video posted on June 10, just two days before the Zaporizhzhia footage, a Russian BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher is seen stationery in a field in Vuhledar, Donetsk Oblast, being targeted by Ukrainian fire.
In the clip, which is just nine seconds long, the multiple rocket launcher is seen behind a mound of earth deliberately created to protect the weapon. Not two seconds into the clip, the multiple rocket launcher erupts into a cloud of dust. The vehicle was reportedly destroyed by a Ukrainian multiple rocket launcher strike.
#Ukraine: A Russian BM-21 Grad 122mm multiple rocket launcher was destroyed by a direct GMLRS hit of the Ukrainian army near Vuhledar, #Donetsk Oblast. pic.twitter.com/ctfhv8N4Rc
— ???????? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) June 10, 2023
“A Russian BM-21 Grad 122mm multiple rocket launcher was destroyed by a direct GMLRS hit of the Ukrainian army near Vuhledar, #Donetsk Oblast,” Ukraine Weapons Tracker writes.
As the cloud of dust appears to settle, the vehicle can be seen firing ammunition straight back – however, it is unclear whether the ammunition was fired deliberately or if it was ignited by accident by the Ukrainian strike.
Jack Buckby is 19FortyFive’s Breaking News Editor. He is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.
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