Mark the Date: Russia Is Now Functionally Out of Armored Vehicles

After losing 20,000 combat vehicle, the Russians no longer fight under armor on a meaningful scale

A burning Russian tank. Kriegsforscher photo

Ukraine is desperately short of trained infantry. Between them, Kyiv’s roughly 130 army, marine, air-assault, national guard and territorial brigades need 80,000 fresh infantry to bring them back to full strength. But Ukraine’s corrupt, unpopular mobilization system hasn’t been able to find those 80,000 new troops. At least not quickly.

Meanwhile, the Russian armed forces are still managing to recruit 30,000 fresh troops a month through a combination of extremely generous enlistment bonuses, thuggish tactics and deceptive enlistment contracts. That’s slightly more troops than Russia loses every month.

Ukrainian brigades are depleted. Russia regiments are flush with bodies. But the huge manpower disparity hasn’t translated into any meaningful breakthroughs along the 700-mile front line of Russia’s wider war on Ukraine. Not since the spring of 2024 and the Russian breakout from the ruins of Avdiivka.

It’s apparent why. Yes, the Russian force in Ukraine has plenty of troops—some 600,000, up from 200,000 on the eve of the wider invasion in February 2022. But with more than 20,000 Russian tanks, fighting vehicles and other heavy equipment lying blown up or burned out along the front line, these troops are now, finally and officially, out of armored vehicles.