India plans to sell 2,500 T‑72 tanks: Potential buyers eyed

After being withdrawn from service, the tanks must undergo major overhauls and upgrades before being put up for sale. India primarily possesses T-72M variants, which were built between 1980 and 2000 in one of its defence factories under license and in collaboration with Russia.

Upgrades to the fire control system, as well as improvements to armor and mobility, are likely to increase the tanks' attractiveness to potential buyers.

The T-72 is a family of main battle tanks developed during the Soviet era. The first units entered service in 1973. Over the years, many variants appeared, gradually adopted by various armies worldwide. The T-72 family includes the Polish PT-91 Twardy, the still highly regarded Russian T-72B3, and the T-72M. The T-72 measures approximately 31 feet in length and is equipped with a 125 mm caliber cannon. However, individual variants sometimes differ significantly in specifications such as armor, fire control systems, and defense systems.

The Ukrainian portal Militarnyj suggests that the Indian authorities will gradually withdraw these tanks from service, modernize them, and sell them in batches. The T-72M remains significant for the Indian army, which uses T-90s and locally produced Arjun tanks.

Defense News has suggested that countries from Africa, the Middle East, and Asia will likely be among those interested in purchasing T-72Ms from India. Militarnyj specifies that Russia could be one of them, as its stock of armored equipment has significantly decreased during the 2.5 years of war with Ukraine. The head of the Ukrainian Center for Military-Legal Research, Oleksandr Musienko, believes that tanks from Russian stockpiles will last only until 2025.

India defines itself as neutral in the Russian-Ukrainian war and continues to maintain trade relations with both countries. Over the years, many defense agreements have been made between Delhi and Moscow. Recently, however, the Indian government has shown interest in Western equipment. It has decided to purchase American P-8 Poseidon patrol aircraft, and is interested in German submarines and French Rafale-M fighters. However, completely cutting off India from Russia is impossible, as Delhi needs components for its post-Soviet weapons and does not want to facilitate closer relations between Moscow and Beijing. It is difficult to predict how the Indian authorities would respond if Russia were interested in the decommissioned T-72M tanks.