Five million rubles to whoever captures Leopard or Abrams. If that sounds like a bonus in a Western, it's the reality in Russia. The Russian company Fores has announced that it will offer this amount, the equivalent of 66,000 euros, to the first soldier who will destroy or capture a Western tank. Leopard being the German model, Abrams the American model. Fores did not stop there: for any other attack on tanks, a soldier will be able to touch 6,000 euros, 200,000 if he destroys an F-15 or an F-16, fighter jets, according to the JDD. All paid in cash.
The Urals-based company is not the first to take this kind of initiative. The governor of Treansbaikalia Krai in Siberia signed an order on January 27 promising high sums to anyone who seizes working Western tanks. Also according to the JDD, Russian actor Ivan Okhlobystin also offered large sums for each damaged Abrams.
Evidence of growing concern in Russia or just a publicity stunt? Still, Ukraine's allies have finally agreed, after (very) long procrastination, to deliver heavy tanks to kyiv. Germany will deliver 14 Leopard 2 tanks, the United States 31 Abrams tanks. The United Kingdom will supply Challengers at the end of March. Other countries, such as France, hesitate at this stage before sending their stock of heavy tanks to Ukraine, fearing in particular a possible weakening of their military capabilities.
But the delivery process could take months, according to several chancelleries, between upstream repair and maintenance needs, in addition to the training of Ukrainian soldiers on these models which they have never used in the field before.
