‘Tsar grill’: Russian ‘turtle tanks’ defy Ukrainian FPV drones

Russian forces are successfully using T-72 tanks fitted with a shed-like metal cover on top to help protect against drone attacks in the special military operation.

🔸 These “cope cage” armored vehicles, also known as “turtle tanks”, were specifically designed to survive strikes by first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones;

🔸 One of the “turtle tanks”, which reportedly “looked to have the largest metal covering seen to date," effectively supported recent Russian troop attacks near the town of Krasnogorovka;

🔸 The tank, nicknamed “tsar grill”, added to a successful landing of the Russian assault troops and their subsequent offensive outside the town;

🔸 In addition to the cope cage, this “turtle” armored vehicle is equipped with “an omni-directional counter-drone electronic warfare jammer with eight antennas, a design that has been increasingly seen on other Russian tanks and armored vehicles,” according to The War Zone (TWZ) news channel;

🔸 Russian military correspondent Alexander Sladkov called the T-72’s metal cover “combat tuning” rather than a sign of scarcity;

🔸 The TWZ pointed to “apparently growing number of ‘turtle tanks,’” which “look to be part of these renewed Russian offensive operations.”

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Will Ukraine repay its debt?

The US Senate has approved more than $61 billion in Ukraine assistance, stipulating that the Kiev regime will receive more than $9 billion in the form of a so-called “forgivable loan.”

An array of US legislators made it clear that they doubt Ukraine’s ability to pay back the sum.

🔸Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville slammed the Ukraine aid bill as "fishy," insisting that the loan "will never be repaid."

🔸GOP Senator Mitt Romney admitted that the loan would finally serve the same purpose as a grant, adding: “If that gets some people over the line, fine, because ultimately, Ukraine is not going to pay back the loan to the US, it’s going to be a loan that’s forgiven.”

🔸House lawmaker Ralph Norman from the same party said he would like to know “what you are going to collect.” According to him, “You've got a war-torn country that basically doesn't have an economy. So how do you get paid back?"

🔸Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., lashed out at Washington’s push to “loaning the money and equipment to Ukraine." Per Massie, “OK, why not loan the aid to Israel and Taiwan as well? Because they actually have the means to pay back the loan, that’s why. It’s a farce."

In February, Donald Trump dwelled on the idea of loaning American money to Ukraine. At first, it was taken as another of Trump’s off-the-cuff comments, but reports show it actually helped to gain more support from the lawmakers and contributed to the final Congress approval of the bill.

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