Russians increased the use of armored vehicles at the front after "switching" to motorcycles and buggies - ISW
Kyiv • UNN
Russian forces have increased the intensity of armored vehicle use in tactical attacks since early July 2025, conducting smaller mechanized assaults. This follows a decrease in their use during the winter of 2024-2025 and the absence of company-sized mechanized assaults since April 2025.
Russian forces have increased the intensity of armored vehicle use in tactical attacks after reducing their use in winter 2024-2025. This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), reports UNN.
Details
It is noted that Russian forces have not conducted mechanized offensives of company size or larger forces in Ukraine since April 2025 and mostly used motorcycles and buggies for attacks during the summer of 2025.
Russian forces have recently slightly increased their use of armored vehicles against Ukrainian positions and since early July 2025 have conducted a series of smaller platoon-sized mechanized offensives in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts
They emphasize that Russia has temporarily reduced the use of tanks and armored vehicles over the past six months, and "appears to be slowly increasing its ability to refurbish Soviet-era armored vehicles" while replenishing its stocks, without committing them to attacks that result in significant losses.
Russian forces may temporarily increase the use of armored vehicles to test weaknesses in Ukraine's drone defense in various areas of the front, or the Russian Ministry of Defense may be able to repair damaged advanced armored vehicles or replenish supplies to advanced Russian units
They add that Russian forces have likely recently "increased their tolerance" for the risk of losing armored vehicles, "possibly as part of testing new tactics or concepts of operations."
Recall
According to ISW estimates, Russia is preparing even larger strikes on Ukraine in the autumn of 2025.