By Richard Moorhead March 17, 2022 at 3:26pm
Drone footage reveals a Russian tank being destroyed in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol.
The shocking footage posted on YouTube by The Sun shows at least one member of the vehicle’s crew evacuating the tank’s hatch, as the T-90 tank repeatedly takes blows from ATGW’s, or anti-tank ground weapons.
Footage of the exchange was published on a Telegram channel associated with a unit of Ukraine’s National Guard.
Seconds after the T90 tank — marked with a ‘Z’ Russian insignia — takes a right turn, it’s blasted by a round.
The vehicle tries to take cover behind a roadside structure, but the direct rocket hits to continue.
After a failed attempt to retreat, the tank appears immobilized, with successive blasts landing in its vicinity.
A man manages to escape through the tank’s hatch, seemingly uninjured, even though he was forced to abandon his fighting vehicle.
The tank was left a smoking heap of scrap metal by the time the barrage of ATGW rounds was finished.
Is Vladimir Putin a war criminal?
The Russian military’s tactics involve the overwhelming use of armored vehicles such as tanks.
This strategy has presented difficulties in Putin’s attempt to conquer Ukraine, whose armed forces are equipped with western, hand-held anti-armor weapons as well as tanks and artillery of their own.
Earlier footage from Mariupol shows a Ukrainian tank crew destroying what appears to be an armored personnel carrier as Russian soldiers take cover behind their vehicle.
Footage: Ukrainian armed vehicle destroys Russian tank pic.twitter.com/bZmNENudXV
— Richard (@Wildman_AZ) March 14, 2022
One Ukrainian soldier posed in front of an earlier destroyed Russian tank with a Javelin missile launcher. Javelins are included as a vital piece of the weapons package provided to Ukraine by the United States.
Ukrainian soldier with a Javelin ATGM and a destroyed Russian T-72B tank. https://t.co/8KwcYyicZC pic.twitter.com/luXkhUdwQf
— Rob Lee (@RALee85) March 16, 2022
An inability to safely use armored vehicles in cities such as Mariupol may suggest a willingness on the part of Russian military forces to blockade, rather than directly occupy cities.
Mariupol has witnessed intense fighting some have pointed to as the most vicious in the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Richard Moorhead is a conservative journalist, a graduate of Arizona State University, service member, and guitar player.