Tug-of-war: Ukraine celebrates its tank-towing farmers

Published Fri, Jul 29, 2022 · 05:30 PM
    • A farm tractor tows an armoured personnel carrier, abandoned by Russian troops and commandeered by a Ukrainian farmer at the end of March, during an event dedicated to the release of the latest military-themed stamps issued by Ukraine's national postal service.
    • A farm tractor tows an armoured personnel carrier, abandoned by Russian troops and commandeered by a Ukrainian farmer at the end of March, during an event dedicated to the release of the latest military-themed stamps issued by Ukraine's national postal service. PHOTO: AFP

    TOWED away gleefully as if it were parked illegally, the Soviet-era armoured personnel carrier doesn’t look so intimidating as it is paraded before the delighted Ukrainians gathered to celebrate its seizure.

    Theoretically, the 1970s MT-LB belongs to the Russian forces – but they abandoned it in Ukraine’s north-east, around 30 km from the warring neighbours’ shared border.

    It was found by tractor driver Vitaliy Denysenko, who grins, a mischievous twinkle in his eye, as he pulls his prize around a field in the village of Mala Rogan, where it was left during a hasty withdrawal at the end of March.