Russian state media on Tuesday reported that the Russian Armed Forces was using a new-generation T-14 Armata main battle tank in Ukraine.
Russian troops began to use the latest T-14 Armata tanks to strike Ukrainian targets, according to Russia’s official news agency RIA Novosti.
The official state media outlet has claimed that Armata tanks are being used to attack Ukrainian positions in an unknown location, but they have not yet taken part in assault operations.
Earlier this year, the British intelligence said Russia’s T-14 tank would likely only be fielded for propaganda purposes in Ukraine, rather than a military advantage.
“In late December 2022, imagery showed T-14s on a training area in southern Russia: the site has been associated with pre-deployment activity for the Ukraine operation,” the UK Defense Ministry said.
The January intelligence update from the British Ministry of Defense reports that Any T-14 deployment is likely to be a high-risk decision for Russia.
“Eleven years in development, the program has been dogged with delays, reduction in planned fleet size, and reports of manufacturing problems,” the report said.
The Russian Army initially planned to acquire 2,300 T-14s between 2015 and 2020, but due to technology imperfections have delayed mass production of its next-generation Armata main battle tanks several times.
