Belarus bolsters Ukraine border with T‑72B tanks amidst tensions
Belarusians are once again strengthening their border with Ukraine. Lukashenko's military is moving T-72B tanks southward, and transport photos have appeared on social media.
In mid-August this year, Belarus tried to divert the Ukrainian army's attention from actions in the Russian Kursk region by sending a large amount of equipment to the border. The list of weapons transported towards Ukraine included Polonez and Iskander missile systems.
Belarus sends tanks to the Ukrainian border
Soon after, Minsk decided to dispose of some of the weapons from its military warehouses—this time handing over valuable machines to the Russian Federation. The Belarusian Ministry of Defense reported sending many rocket artillery systems to Russia, including the BM-30 Smerch complexes.
The clearing of warehouses continues in full force, and Belarus again decides to strengthen the border with Ukraine with tanks. For the second time in several weeks, it is sending T-72B tanks towards Russia's adversary. The profile @front_ukrainian on platform X, among others, is sharing photos of the Belarusian army units' transport. It is unknown how many machines will reach the border, but the photos show at least a dozen participating in the rail transport.
The T-72B is one of the most well-known and widely used tanks from the Soviet and later Russian armies. Its versatility and reliability make it a machine still valued on battlefields around the world.
The T-72B is powered by a V-84-1 engine that generates about 840 hp, allowing the tank to reach a maximum speed of up to 60 km/h on paved roads and 35-45 km/h off-road. The engine’s power enables the tank to climb inclines of up to 30° and traverse water obstacles up to 1.2 metres deep without preparation and up to 4.8 metres deep with proper preparation.
Belarusian T-72B tanks are armed with a 125 mm 2A46M cannon capable of firing various projectiles, including AT-11 anti-tank guided missiles that can hit targets up to 4 km away. The tank also has a 7.62 mm PKT machine gun and a 12.7 mm NSVT anti-aircraft machine gun. This equipment allows the T-72B crew to effectively engage both armoured units and enemy infantry.
