‘Ukraine now Europe’s frontier; China’s J-20A may eclipse USAF F-22 fleet’
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, February 15: With Russia-Ukraine War overstretching, there are suggestions that Moscow may already have lost half of tanks, with morale of the military leadership having been hit badly. While the Ukraine’s technologically superior arsenal is being credited for tipping the scale in favour of Kyiv, the security experts are also underling that the human factor in the battle need not be written off as has been seen with the Russian army in the Ukrainian battlefield.
“Around 50 per cent of Russia’s pre-invasion fleet of modern T-72B3s and T-72B3M main battle tanks is assessed to have been lost. Ukraine’s artillery holdings are transformative. Western-designed 155mm guns and rocket artillery mean its army can now strike at long range with more precise projectiles,” remarked John Chipman, the Director General of the International Institute of Strategic Studies.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently wrapped his visits to the US and Europe where he was accorded hero’s welcome. He addressed legislative leaders in the US and Europe, with host countries affirming commitment to stand with Ukraine in the war against Russia. Chipman noted that Ukraine is now the frontier of Europe.
“Allies and partners of the US and Europe, as well as opponents, will watch carefully to gauge the durability of Western support, and the commitment to defend the European security order,” said Chipman, while speaking at the launch of the Military Balance Report 2023. He stressed that the “war in Ukraine has been infused with technology, yet it has highlighted the importance of the human factor in war, with leadership, morale and training proving vital”.
This is in line with the overall commentary on the war that the low morale of the Russian forces coupled with desertions in the ranks have compounded the challenges for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is seen to have dragged his country into a losing battle. Ukraine is now eying to free Crimea also from the possession of Russia apparently buoyed over by the gains on the battlefields.
While Russia-Ukraine War appears heading on the line of Iran-Iraq war, which went on for years, the security analysts are closely watching the rapid modernization of the military assets by China amid growing sabre rattling by Beijing. “Fear of China’s growing military power is an important factor influencing military modernisation elsewhere in Asia, most notably in Australia and Japan. If China’s deliveries continue at the same speed, in 2023 the number of J-20As will eclipse the inventory of the USAF’s earliest fifth-generation combat aircraft, the F-22,” added Chipman.
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