Russia economy on brink as Putin quickly ‘running out’ of tanks

Russian leader Vladimir Putin could be forced into peace by a dwindling supply of equipment (Image: Getty )

Vladimir Putin could be forced into peace negotiations over his invasion of Ukraine because Russia could "run out of tanks" at any time now. So far, the Russian President has been resistant to European and US efforts to drag him into a ceasefire with diplomatic and financial pressure.

US President Donald Trump, and a so-called coalition of the willing of 31 nations, led by Britain and France, have failed to make the Kremlin cease the ongoing war in Ukraine which has been raging since Russia invaded in February 2022. But Jack Watling, senior research fellow for Land Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London, said Putin may not be able to hold out much longer as the realities of sustaining the conflict with war machinery start to bite.

CNBC reports Mr Watling said Russian stockpiles of military equipment left over from the Soviet era, including tanks, artillery and infantry fighting vehicles, will be running out between now and mid-autumn.

He said: "Russia will seek to intensify offensive operations to build pressure during negotiations, but the pressure cannot be sustained indefinitely.

A Russian tank destroyed during the invasion of Ukraine (Image: Getty )

"At the same time, while Russia can fight another two campaign seasons with its current approach to recruitment, further offensive operations into 2026 will likely require further forced mobilisation, which is both politically and economically challenging."

In Ukraine's capital Kyiv, rusting destroyed Russian tanks and armour have been displayed since the first few months of the war, with local citizens taking pictures and children playing on the rusting hulks of Putin's war machine. 

Russia has suffered devastating losses during the Ukraine war, and just replacing just one destroyed tank could cost millions of pounds.

The decay on the battlefield is being echoed in the Russian economy which has seen sky-rocketing inflation driving high food and production costs in conditions even Putin has admitted are "alarming". Russia's Central Bank (CBR) is pegging interest rates at 21%, compared to just 4.25% at the Bank of England, in a bid to lower inflation which was hovering at a damaging 10.2% in April. 

The CBR said "a prolonged period of tight monetary policy" is required to bring back down inflation to a target of 4% by 2026.

Liam Peach, senior emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, said: "The sharp slowdown in Russian gross domestic product growth from 4.5% year-on-year in the fourth quarter, to 1.4% in the first quarter is consistent with a sharp fall in output and suggests that the economy may be heading for a much harder landing than we had expected."

Russian tanks and armour are displayed in Kyiv, Ukraine (Image: Getty )

On Wednesday, Putin visited Russia's Kursk region for the first time since Moscow claimed that it drove Ukrainian forces out of the area last month. In summer last year, Ukraine launched a surprise offensive into the area, taking over vast swathes of Russian territory and humiliating the Kremlin.

The incursion was the first time Russian territory was occupied by an invader since World War II and dealt an embarrassing blow to Moscow.

Russia has rejected recent US and European proposals for a ceasefire. On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed Kyiv’s allies were only seeking a truce "so that they can calmly arm Ukraine, so that Ukraine can strengthen its defensive positions."

North Korea sent up to 12,000 troops to help the Russian army take back control of Kursk, according to Ukraine, the US and South Korea.

Russia announced on April 26 that its forces had pushed out the Ukrainian army. Kyiv officials denied the claim. Ukraine says it stopped Russian attacks in Kursk