Former Russian President Dimitri Medvedev has said the country must boost tank production while the West continues to arm Ukraine.
Medvedev, who is currently vice president of Russia’s Security Council, said on Thursday that the acceleration in Russian tank manufacturing would be a response to Western countries dumping weapons and advanced military equipment, including battle tanks, into Ukraine.
“As we know, our adversary (Ukraine) has been begging abroad for planes, missiles, tanks. How should we respond? It is clear that in this case, it is natural that we will increase the production of various armaments, including modern tanks, ”he said, during a visit to a tank factory in the Siberian city of Omsk.
“The production and upgrading of thousands of tanks are on the agenda,” Medvedev said, adding that this task stems from the state defense order and decisions made by the Russian president.
Footage from the visit to the Omsk plant showed Medvedev inspecting a heavily upgraded version of the T-80 tank, dubbed the BMV.
The T-80BMV features Relikt’s third-generation explosive reactive armor, the Irtysh fire control system, the Sosna-U gunner’s sight, an upgraded 2A46M-5 125mm gun that can fire 9K119M Refleks-M guided missiles, an improved autoloader and a gas turbine engine generating 1,250 hp.
Medvedev also inspected a TOS-1A multiple launch rocket system, which is built around the chassis of the T-72 tank. The system can be armed with up to 24 unguided 220mm thermobaric rockets with a range of six to ten kilometers.
Medvedev’s comments came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is currently on a European tour in search of more weapons, particularly fighter jets.
The Ukrainian leader’s first stop on Wednesday was the UK, where he met Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and King Charles III. He also addressed British MPs.
Later on Wednesday, Zelensky arrived in Paris, where he met with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. On Thursday he flew to Brussels, where he called on European lawmakers to allow his country to become part of the European Union, insisting that Europe is Ukraine’s “home.”
Source: Press TV
