Rysslands militära flopp i Ukraina

Abrams tank destroyed in Ukraine conflict (FIRST VIDEO) – media
The Russian military has knocked out one of the US-supplied tanks serving with Kiev’s army, footage circulating online suggests
https://www.rt.com/russia/593197-abrams-tank-ukraine/
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Moscow’s troops have destroyed the first US-made M1 Abrams main battle tank supplied to Kiev’s forces amid the Ukraine conflict, multiple Russian Telegram channels reported on Monday.

Footage circulating online purports to show the vehicle with a large column of fire rising from its turret. It was reportedly targeted by a FPV suicide drone and sustained at least one hit from a shoulder-mounted anti-tank grenade launcher.

The tank was reportedly hit near the village of Berdychi, located to the northwest of Avdeevka, a key Donbass town recently liberated by Russian forces.

A close-up of the destroyed Abrams taken by a surveillance drone shows the vehicle’s ammunition compartment burned-out, with the engine compartment on fire.

Washington pledged to supply Ukraine with 31 M1 Abrams tanks in January 2022, ahead of Kiev’s long-hyped yet ultimately botched counteroffensive. However, they were fully delivered only by mid-October and have seemingly been kept away from the frontline, being featured only in propaganda videos.

The Ukrainian Abrams have seen actual combat only over the past few days, ending up deployed to the battlefield to bolster Kiev’s effort to stop the westward advance of Russian troops following the fall of Avdeevka, formerly a major Ukrainian stronghold in Donbass and one of the key staging points for indiscriminate artillery and rocket attacks on the city of Donetsk.

Russian military makes new gains in Donbass
Moscow’s forces have liberated the village of Lastochkino, continuing their advance westward from the key town of Avdeevka
Russian military makes new gains in Donbass
© Sputnik / Stanislav Krasilnikov

The Russian Defense Ministry has announced the liberation of the village of Lastochkino in Donbass. The settlement is located to the west of Avdeevka, a major former stronghold of the Ukrainian military which was captured by Russian forces earlier this month.

Lastochkino has seen intense combat in recent days, with the Russian military continuing its westward push from Avdeevka. Ukrainian troops have ramped up their effort to stabilize the front line, staging repeated counterattacks in the area, the Russian Defense Ministry noted in a briefing on Monday.

Over the past 24 hours, Russian troops have repelled six counterattacks in multiple locations to the west of Avdeevka. Ukraine has lost up to 410 servicemen, a tank, three infantry fighting vehicles, and other hardware in combat, according to estimates from Moscow.
Abrams tank destroyed in Ukraine conflict (FIRST VIDEO) – media READ MORE: Abrams tank destroyed in Ukraine conflict (FIRST VIDEO) – media

The loss of Lastochkino has been acknowledged by Kiev, with a spokesperson for the Tavria strategic-operational group stating that Ukrainian forces had “retreated.” The move was necessary to create a stable defensive line between the villages of Orlovka, Tonenkoye and Berdychi, the spokesperson claimed. Ukrainian forces are apparently seeking to base their defenses on a system of canals and ponds, stretching across the three locations.

The town of Avdeevka had been a major stronghold for Kiev’s forces since the early stages of the conflict in then-Ukrainian Donbass, which erupted in the aftermath of the 2014 Maidan coup. It was liberated on February 17 when Russian forces broke through the defensive lines, triggering a chaotic rout of Ukrainian troops from the area.

Kiev has insisted it was a properly organized withdrawal, ordered by newly appointed top general Aleksandr Syrsky. According to Moscow, the order to retreat was actually issued around one day after Ukrainian troops had begun to flee Avdeevka.