Ukraine army uses Romanian-made TAB-71M 8x8 armored personnel carrier

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According to a picture published on the "GettyImages" on November 12, 2022, via the Anadolu Agency, Ukraine's armed forces are now using Romanian-made TAB-71M 8x8 armored vehicles. The TAB-71M is an 8x8 armored vehicle that was produced in Romania and is also used by Moldavia and ex-Yugoslavia.
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Romanian TAB-71M 8x8 armored personnel carrier at Bucharest Military Museum. (Picture source Army Recognition)

According to the GettyImages legend, the picture was taken on November 12, 2022, when the Ukrainian military enters the southern city of Kherson after Russian troops retreat from the region in the village of Kyselivka.

Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Romania has already provided Ukraine €3 million worth of non-lethal military equipment including combat helmets, bulletproof vests as well as fuel, ammunition, water, and medicine. But to date, no official information mentions the delivery of armored vehicles to Ukraine

The TAB-71 is a Romanian version of the Soviet-made BTR-60 that was produced by the Romanian company RATMIL which is now named ROMARM. The vehicle entered production in 1970 and was first seen during a military parade in Romania in August 1972. According to open source, currently, Romania's army will have 354 TAB-71 in different variants including the TAB-71M.

The TAB-71M is a modernized version of the TAB-71 that enter into service with the Romanian army in the early 1980s. The layout of the vehicle is similar to the Soviet-made BTR-60PB 8x8 APC (Armored Personnel Carrier) but is powered by 797-05M1 diesel engine developing 132 hp. We can see that the rear of the vehicle is different from the Soviet BTR-60 with a different position for the exhaust systems.

The TAB-71M is fitted with a one-man turret armed with one 14.5 mm KPVT and one 7.62 mm PKT machine gun with a distinctive day gunsight mounted on the left side of the turret. As an APC, the vehicle has a crew of three including a driver, commander and gunner and the rear of the hull can accommodate up to 8 infantrymen.

The hull of the TAB-71M is of all-welded steel armor and provides protection against the firing of small arms and artillery shell splinters. It retains the central tire-pressure regulation system, amphibious capability, front-mounted winch, and NBC system of the Soviet BTR-60PB APC.