The new brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are being equipped with ancient armored vehicles that are over half a century old

The new 154th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces has primarily received armored vehicles that are over half a century old.

This was reported by Forbes.

Ukraine has formed eleven new brigades, but they lack modern weaponry. Additionally, foreign “donations” of equipment have significantly slowed down.

Last fall, when the latest Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine was just beginning, the Ukrainian Armed Forces started forming the first of these eleven new brigades. Together, these brigades—numbered from 150 to 160—represent a 10% increase in Ukraine’s ground forces.

In theory, after about six months of training, these brigades are supposed to be deployed along the thousand-kilometer frontline against Russia: to defend the east, hold positions in the quiet south, or even attack in the north.

But in practice, they are critically short of modern weapons. This could pose a serious problem for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as these new but poorly equipped brigades will replace older, better-equipped units that will finally be withdrawn from the frontlines—some after a year and a half of continuous fighting.

“It remains a mystery where Ukraine will find enough mechanized equipment to arm these units,” noted the analytical group Militaryland, which tracks changes in the structure of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and reported the formation of the new brigades last year. “There’s already a shortage of infantry fighting vehicles.”

One of the new brigades, the 154th Mechanized Brigade, is quite illustrative. Each of the eleven new brigades consists of about 2,000 soldiers. Photos of the 154th Mechanized Brigade during exercises—possibly in Ukraine or at a NATO base in the Czech Republic—provide an idea of its equipment.

The brigade is equipped with 1960s-era tracked BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles. Also in service are BRDM-2 wheeled reconnaissance vehicles from the 1960s and French-made VAB wheeled armored personnel carriers from the 1970s. The brigade has U.S.-donated M-1117 wheeled armored vehicles from the 1990s. Overall, the 154th Mechanized Brigade is armed mainly with old and light vehicles, with armor no thicker than 33 millimeters—just enough to withstand machine gun fire.

To be fair, the brigade might also have heavier vehicles, such as the 60-year-old T-62 tanks. However, it’s possible that the T-62s seen on Ukrainian training grounds belong to instructors rather than the 154th Brigade.

If the 154th Mechanized Brigade does indeed plan to use T-62 tanks, it’s a worrying sign for an army otherwise equipped with relatively modern modifications of the T-64 and T-72, along with a smaller number of donated Challengers (Challenger 2), Abrams (M-1), and Leopards (Leopard 1 and Leopard 2).

The Russian army was once ridiculed for pulling old T-62s out of storage to replace destroyed tanks—and rightly so. However, it’s just as problematic for the Ukrainian Armed Forces to send “retirees” like the T-62 into battle.

Moreover, foreign donations of armored vehicles have significantly slowed, having peaked before Ukraine’s summer 2023 counteroffensive. This slowdown is the main reason why the new brigades are being equipped with mostly outdated vehicles, according to Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief General Oleksandr Syrskyi.

“Planned deliveries of weapons and equipment will enable us to bring our new brigades—those already formed and those still being formed—into action as soon as possible,” Syrskyi told CNN. “Of course, this affects our overall capabilities.”

It’s worth noting that the Russians also face challenges in equipping their new brigades with enough vehicles. The Kremlin increasingly equips its units with civilian transport, from motorcycles to buggies.

However, even with motorcycles and buggies, the Russians are generally better equipped than the Ukrainians—and they have more personnel. Syrskyi said that his forces could mitigate Russia’s numerical advantage by “focusing on high-tech weapons.”

But a 60-year-old BMP-1, the “workhorse” of one of Ukraine’s newest brigades, cannot be described as high-tech.