Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia’s Chechnya region, has confirmed that the Russian military has received the first batch of Chinese-made armored vehicles.
Kadyrov has released footage showing “new vehicles purchased for Chechen units participating in the Special Military Operation [war in Ukraine].”
The new vehicle is a Tigr 4×4 armored vehicle personnel carrier developed by the Chinese defense Company Shaanxi Baoji Special Vehicles Manufacturing.
The Tiger APC has a crew of 2, which consists of the commander and driver, and can carry 9 fully equipped infantrymen.
The Tiger can be adapted for various roles, such as APC, patrol, police vehicle, ambulance, command post and weapons carrier. Since its introduction at the 2012 Eurosatory exhibition, the Tiger has been sold to several militaries, including those of the Bahamas, Bolivia, Somalia and Tajikistan.
Kadyrov led forces in Ukraine that have been particularly brutal and involved in killing and torturing civilians in Bucha, Irpin, Mariupol, Bakhmut, and Sievierodonetsk.