Reported by the Reference News website on May 21, citing a May 19 report from RT电视台 website, the Russian State Corporation Rostec exposed obvious defects of Germany's Leopard-2A6 main battle tank, stating that this tank is not suitable for modern warfare.
Rostec's assessment was based on an analysis of the captured Leopard-2A6 main battle tank from the Ukrainian army. A statement released by the company on May 19 indicated that engineers found weak points in the tank armor and internal structure.
Rostec stated: "In modern warfare, the survivability of this tank may be insufficient. For example, if drones and modern portable missiles equipped with high-explosive anti-tank warheads attack this tank from various directions, it cannot guarantee survivability." The company also mentioned that the defensive system configuration of this tank is aimed at traditional anti-tank weapons that were more common decades ago.
Rostec pointed out that there have been several incidents where German-made tanks were defeated on the battlefield of the Ukraine conflict, including a recent example released by the Russian Ministry of Defense, showing that a drone attacked a Leopard tank.
The company noted that many armored combat vehicles sent to Ukraine by Germany are older Leopard-1 main battle tanks, which are reported to be "mostly inefficient."
By contrast, Rostec said that the Russian tanks deployed in the Russia-Ukraine conflict have been upgraded to resist drone attacks and advanced anti-tank missiles. The company provided examples of Russian tanks continuing to fight after suffering multiple strikes.
In April, German media reported that some weapon systems sent to Ukraine performed poorly. This conclusion was based on remarks made by a defense attaché at the Berlin embassy in Kyiv. It was reported that he detailed Ukraine's complaints to officials of the German Federal Defense Forces in January. Allegedly, this official mentioned that the maintenance costs for the Leopard-2A6 main battle tank were expensive, and almost impossible to repair on the battlefield.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz vowed to increase Germany's military spending, aiming to make the Federal Defense Forces "the most powerful conventional army in Europe." The new German government plans to increase defense spending from around 2% of GDP to 3%. (Compiled/translated by Hu Xue)
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7506818735328723465/
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