Russia depletes distant Sakhalin base to bolster Ukraine offensive

As reported by the Moscow Times portal, over 250 armoured vehicles have been removed from the Russian military equipment base Dachnoye near Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk since the start of the war in Ukraine. This is another example of the Russians significantly depleting their stockpiles to make up for losses incurred in Ukraine.

The base in Dachnoye is located furthest from the front line of all such Russian facilities—over 3,700 miles from Ukraine, at the border with Japan. It is situated on the island of Sakhalin, so as noted by the Moscow Times, either the fleet or aviation was necessary to transport the equipment.

Based on satellite image analysis, the portal stated that two years before the war, nearly 600 armoured vehicles were stationed at the base. In October 2022, this number decreased to 556, and by May 2024 it had dropped to 342. Before the war with Ukraine, there were nine hangars at the base. By 2024, only five remained, as the rest had been destroyed.

The Russian Ministry of Defence adopts a strategy of four categories for maintaining old military equipment. The most valuable equipment is stored in ventilated and heated rooms, the second in hangars, the third under tents, and the last category outdoors. At the 230th military base, most of the equipment was kept outdoors. In 2020, about 92 units were under tents; by 2022, there were 99 units, and by May 2024, there were only 39 units of military equipment under tents.

According to information from the Moscow Times portal, tanks, mortars, self-propelled guns, and anti-aircraft guns were stored there before the war in Ukraine. This equipment included items used on the front lines in Ukraine. These include T-72B tanks, 2S3 Akatsiya self-propelled howitzers, Strela-10 anti-aircraft defence systems, and BM-21 Grad rocket launchers.

The T-72B is an evolution of the T-72A and is one of the most widespread tanks from the T-72 family in the Russian army, including among units fighting in Ukraine. They measure over 31 feet in length and nearly 23 feet in width. The armament consists of a 125 mm cannon with a rate of fire of about 6-8 rounds per minute and 7.62 mm and 12.7 mm machine guns.

The base in Dachnoye is part of the corps responsible for the defence of the Far East and the Kurils. After the attack on Ukraine, the Russian Ministry of Defence rotated equipment and soldiers from the Far East. Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk is the headquarters of the 39th Separate Motor Rifle Red Banner Brigade, which participates in the war in Ukraine. In July 2023, Vladimir Putin awarded this brigade the title of Guards Brigade. The independent portal Mediazona estimated that by September of this year, at least 677 soldiers from the Sakhalin region had died in the war.