Russian Soldiers Seize NATO Armored Vehicles in Ukraine: Video Footage Released by Ministry of Defense

MOSCOW – The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) released footage showing Russian troops in the Zaporozhye Region inspecting a NATO-supplied armored vehicle captured from the Ukrainian army.

Video released on Tuesday appears to show an excited Russian soldier circling some of the damaged equipment, including a German-made Leopard 2 main battle tank and a US-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicle.

He said that some of their machines were still running. “This (explicit) hardware isn’t as scary as it seems,” the man reveals.

The Russian Defense Ministry, which shared the clip on social media, called the Western vehicle “our trophy”.

Russia argued the conditions in which they were found “demonstrate the rapid pace of engagement and abandonment of combat-ready hardware by forces of the Ukrainian armed forces.”

As Kiev was preparing for its counteroffensive against Russia, Western countries supplied it with dozens of armored vehicles, including main battle tanks.

Ukrainian officials, including Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov, touted the donated “panzerfist” as a game changer in the conflict against Russia.

The Ukrainian counter-offensive operation was finally launched last week and has so far failed to bring about dramatic changes on the front lines.

Moscow says it has thwarted all Ukrainian attempts to break through its defense lines.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called the losses of the Ukrainian army “impressive”. Putin blamed the Ukrainian government for taking actions that pushed the situation to its current “tragic” state.

(she)