India deployed Russian T-72 battle tanks against Pakistan
The Indian Army used T-72 main battle tanks to destroy several Pakistani cross-border posts between May 7 and May 10, according to local media reports.
The tanks were put in position ahead of India's military strikes on suspected terrorist facilities in Pakistan-controlled territory, codenamed Operation Sindoor, to take on specific targets marked out by the army, the NDTV website reported. The key role of the T-72s was to destroy the routes through which terrorists could infiltrate into India, according to the report.
'We also hit enemy posts which were facilitating infiltration. We know which posts are used as bases for infiltration by the enemy. An informed call was taken – and the targets were hit,' NDTV cited an Indian Army colonel as saying.
Operation Sindoor was launched on May 7 in response to a terrorist attack in April in the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir that claimed the lives of 26 people, mostly tourists. India has blamed the attack on a front that is an offshoot of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, while Islamabad has denied any direct or indirect involvement.
Hours after Indian missiles struck Pakistani targets on May 7, Islamabad responded with attacks on various locations in Jammu and Kashmir, which New Delhi said resulted in at least 16 fatalities and dozens of injuries.
Fighting between the South Asian neighbors continued until May 10 when a ceasefire was agreed upon by both sides. T-72 tanks have long been a mainstay of the Indian Army's armored fleet.
In March, New Delhi signed a $248 million contract with Rosoboronexport, the Russian state agency for defense exports, to procure engines for the Indian Army's T-72s. The deal included technology transfer to support local production under New Delhi's 'Make in India' initiative, which aims to increase self-reliance on domestic defense manufacturing.
From 2005 to 2025, Rosoboronexport signed contracts with India worth $50 billion, with total Russian military equipment supplies to the country reaching $80 billion.
India also used the Russian-made S-400 mobile surface-to-air system to repel Pakistani attacks. 'Platforms like the S-400 have given unprecedented strength to the country,' Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an address to soldiers last week.
Around 60% of the Indian military's hardware is of Russian origin, and the two countries have expressed their willingness to further deepen ties.
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