Captured Leopard 2 resurfaces at Russia’s main tank factory

BERLIN — Russia has transported a captured Ukrainian Leopard tank deep into its hinterland to tear it down and analyze its components, an open-source investigation by Defense News shows.

Satellite imagery, footage released by Russian media and other open-source information pinpoint the location of the captured 2A6 tank . The factory, Uralvagonzavod – Ural Wagon Factory, in English – is known as the world’s largest tank producer, reportedly having churned out over 100,000 since World War 2. It is also involved in the production of the most modern tank variants Russia has to offer.

The captured tank appeared in good shape once the tarp covering it during its journey was lifted by workers. On the sides of the turret, anti-drone steel screens – colloquially called “cope cages” – were visible. These additions have become standard on the battlefield in Ukraine as a simple defense against explosive-laden kamikaze drones, which can crack armored vehicles when rammed into weak points.

It’s unclear when and where exactly the Leopard tank was captured by Russian forces. Dutch open-source investigative site Onyx, which keeps track of battlefield losses in the Ukraine war, has identified 13 Leopard 2A6 tanks that the Ukrainian armed forces have lost. Seven have been destroyed, while the rest were damaged.

Located in Nizhny Tagil behind Russia’s Ural Mountains, which form the boundary between Europe and Asia, the factory where the Leopard 2 resurfaced is far from the front line in Ukraine. The vehicle was seen arriving at the facility under the cover of darkness on a flatbed truck, video footage reviewed by Defense News showed.

The Ural Wagon Factory, which produces train cars besides armored vehicles, is one of the largest industrial complexes in Russia. It was built in its present location deep inside Russia at Stalin’s behest during World War 2. At the time, the rapid advance of German forces in their surprise “Barbarossa” invasion necessitated the evacuation of vital wartime industries far away from the Western border of Russia, home to most of the country’s population centers.

The location was likely chosen as the destination for the captured 2A6 Leopard because of its institutional knowledge and role as a high-end tank manufacturer in the Russian military-industrial complex, meaning it houses experienced engineers. Media reports from 2023 showed that the state-owned enterprise was responsible for producing Russia’s modern T-90M and the modernization of T-72B3M main battle tanks.

Defense News was able to geolocate video footage of this upgrade process to the same building where the captured Ukrainian Leopard tank was dropped off.

The plant’s importance was underscored by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit in February of this year. Russian government press releases have hinted that new production capabilities are being added to Uralvagonzavod, and the factory has switched to an around-the-clock work schedule to increase its output for the war effort in Ukraine.

Sensitive technologies?

Russian media gloated at the capture of the Western tank, citing Western industry publications as panicking about classified technologies falling into Moscow’s hands. Articles further goaded that “the unsuccessful use of German tanks in Ukraine could negatively affect the export potential of armored vehicles,” as RIA Novosti, a Russian state-owned news agency, put it.

Although over 20 years old, the German-made Leopard 2A6 is still regarded as a competent and modern main battle tank. Its advantages over Russian tanks range from higher crew survivability to the advanced gun, fire control system, different armor, type of shells used, and even the powerful and efficient engine.

Despite some media claims, gladly echoed by Russian state-run outlets, it is unclear whether the tanks delivered to Ukraine from Germany contain more sensitive technologies than those that were built for export to other countries. Some analysts expressed concern that because the tanks came from German Bundeswehr stocks, they may have especially advanced systems on board.

KNDS, the tank’s manufacturer, told Defense News that the company was not concerned about the capture of its technology by Russia.

“It won’t be easy to copy, and Russia is likely to have much of the information already anyway,” a company spokesperson said in an interview. The arms manufacturer further clarified that there is no such thing as an “export version” of the tank, but that orders are tailored to their specific customers’ requirements. The spokesperson, who asked to remain unnamed, could not say whether there were particularly sensitive technologies in the tanks coming from the German armed forces or whether they had been modified before being sent to Ukraine.

“The Russians will likely be able to figure out some things — but what exactly, is hard to say,” the company spokesperson concluded.

The German armed forces did not return a reply for clarification and comment on the specifics of the Leopard 2A6 tank in time for publication.

Germany has provided Ukraine with 18 Leopard tanks of the 2A6 variant, while Portugal has contributed three.

This isn’t the first Leopard 2 that Russia has captured. In April, footage was released of Russian military men analyzing a tank in a field tent that was missing its treads. However, the more recently resurfaced tank appears to be in much better condition, possibly providing insights that Russia was unable to gain previously.

Dozens of Western countries, including many in NATO, use the Leopard 2 tank in various configurations. Finland operates 200 Leopard 2 tanks, of which 100 are of the 2A6 variant. Analyzing its capabilities and limitations could assist Russia in furthering its own domestic technologies but could also provide Moscow’s armed forces with a better understanding of how to defend against and destroy the vehicle.

Russian government outlets have repeatedly said that the Western supply to Ukraine amounted to “playing with fire” and directly involved NATO countries in the conflict, a stance that the Euro-American alliance rejects.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine would be considered legitimate targets by the Russian military.

Linus Höller is Defense News' Europe correspondent and OSINT investigator. He reports on the arms deals, sanctions, and geopolitics shaping Europe and the world. He holds master’s degrees in WMD nonproliferation, terrorism studies, and international relations, and works in four languages: English, German, Russian, and Spanish.

柏林——据《防务新闻》的一项公开调查显示，俄罗斯已将缴获的一辆乌克兰豹式坦克运往其内陆深处，将其拆解并分析其部件。

卫星图像、俄罗斯媒体发布的视频以及其他公开信息精确定位了缴获的2A6坦克的所在地。该工厂——乌拉尔车辆厂（Uralvagonzavod）——是世界上最大的坦克生产商，据报道自二战以来已生产超过10万辆坦克。它还参与生产俄罗斯最先进的坦克型号。

缴获的坦克在被工人们掀开运输途中覆盖的篷布后，看起来状况良好。炮塔两侧可以看到防无人机的钢制防护网——俗称“防撞笼”。这些装置已成为乌克兰战场上的标准配置，用于防御携带炸药的自杀式无人机。这些无人机撞击装甲车辆的薄弱点时，会造成破坏。

目前尚不清楚俄军缴获这辆豹式坦克的具体时间和地点。荷兰开源调查网站Onyx持续追踪乌克兰战争中的战场损失，该网站已确认乌克兰军队损失了13辆豹2A6坦克。其中7辆被摧毁，其余受损。

位于俄罗斯乌拉尔山脉后方的下塔吉尔市，距离乌克兰前线很远，而豹2坦克正是在这座乌拉尔山脉环绕的工厂中重现踪迹。据《防务新闻》查阅的视频显示，这辆坦克是在夜幕掩护下，由一辆平板卡车运抵工厂的。

乌拉尔车辆厂除了生产装甲车辆外，还生产火车车厢，是俄罗斯最大的工业综合体之一。它是在二战期间，根据斯大林的命令，建在俄罗斯境内的现址。当时，德军发动“巴巴罗萨”突袭，迅速推进，迫使俄罗斯将重要的战时工业设施从西部边境地区（该国大部分人口中心所在地）撤离。

之所以选择这个地点作为缴获的2A6豹式坦克的处置地点，很可能是因为该地点拥有丰富的经验，并且是俄罗斯军工联合体中一家高端坦克制造商，这意味着它拥有经验丰富的工程师。2023年的媒体报道显示，这家国有企业负责生产俄罗斯先进的T-90M坦克以及T-72B3M主战坦克的现代化改造。

《防务新闻》通过视频定位，发现此次升级过程的地点与缴获的乌克兰豹式坦克被卸下的地点是同一栋建筑。

今年2月，俄罗斯总统普京的访问凸显了该工厂的重要性。俄罗斯政府新闻稿暗示，乌拉尔车辆厂正在扩建新的生产线，并已改为24小时不间断运转，以提高产量，支援乌克兰的战争。

敏感技术？

俄罗斯媒体对缴获西方坦克一事幸灾乐祸，并援引西方行业刊物的话称，他们对机密技术落入莫斯科手中感到恐慌。俄罗斯国家通讯社俄新社（RIA Novosti）的文章进一步煽动说，“德国坦克在乌克兰的失败使用可能会对装甲车辆的出口潜力产生负面影响”。

尽管已有20多年的历史，德国制造的豹2A6主战坦克仍然被认为是一款性能卓越且现代化的主战坦克。它相对于俄罗斯坦克的优势体现在诸多方面，包括更高的乘员生存能力、更先进的火炮、火控系统、不同的装甲、使用的炮弹类型，甚至还有动力强劲且高效的发动机。

尽管一些媒体声称（俄罗斯官方媒体也对此表示赞同），但目前尚不清楚从德国运抵乌克兰的坦克是否比出口到其他国家的坦克含有更敏感的技术。一些分析人士担心，由于这些坦克来自德国联邦国防军的库存，它们可能搭载了特别先进的系统。

坦克制造商 KNDS 告诉《防务新闻》，该公司并不担心其技术被俄罗斯窃取。

“复制这种坦克并不容易，而且俄罗斯很可能已经掌握了大部分信息，”该公司一位发言人在接受采访时表示。这家军火制造商进一步澄清，这种坦克并不存在所谓的“出口版本”，所有订单都是根据客户的具体需求量身定制的。这位要求匿名的发言人无法透露这些来自德国军方的坦克是否包含特别敏感的技术，也无法说明它们在运往乌克兰之前是否经过改装。

“俄罗斯人或许能弄明白一些事情——但究竟是什么，很难说，”该公司发言人总结道。

德国武装部队未能及时回复，以澄清和评论豹2A6坦克的具体细节，因此本文未能及时发表。

德国向乌克兰提供了 18 辆 2A6 型豹式坦克，葡萄牙提供了 3 辆。

这并非俄罗斯首次缴获豹2坦克。今年4月，一段视频曝光，显示俄罗斯军方人员在野战帐篷内分析一辆履带缺失的坦克。然而，最近重见天日的这辆坦克状况似乎要好得多，或许能为俄罗斯提供此前未能获得的信息。

数十个西方国家，包括许多北约成员国，都在使用不同型号的豹2坦克。芬兰拥有200辆豹2坦克，其中100辆是2A6型。分析豹2坦克的性能和局限性，不仅有助于俄罗斯推进本国技术发展，还能让莫斯科武装部队更好地了解如何防御和摧毁这种坦克。

俄罗斯政府媒体多次表示，西方向乌克兰提供援助无异于“玩火”，直接将北约国家卷入冲突，但这一立场遭到了欧美联盟的反对。

俄罗斯外长谢尔盖·拉夫罗夫表示，任何载有运往乌克兰的武器的货物都将被俄罗斯军方视为合法目标。

林努斯·霍勒是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者和开源情报调查员。他报道影响欧洲乃至全球的军火交易、制裁和地缘政治。他拥有大规模杀伤性武器不扩散、恐怖主义研究和国际关系三个硕士学位，并精通英语、德语、俄语和西班牙语四种语言。