After the end of the Cold War the newly formed Russia was facing a problem. Thousands of weapons were built for a war which would never happen. In the first years, a big share of these weapons disappeared into the arms of private people, which in the end supported the civil wars in the third world. Well, but what to do with the rest? Many weapons were locked up in secret bunkers, others were destroyed or bought by the national military. But this didn’t suffice. Big vehicles like tanks or assault choppers were put in big warehouses, they were disarmed and left to natural deconstruction and rusting.
This happened in the now Ukrainian city Kharkiv. In the suburban marginal areas of the city, a treasure of unimaginable value is stored. 400 Russian tanks are still waiting for the war to break out. Rusted and rusting, they try to stand wind and weather. Nearby, a factory is situated which used to maintain the motors and which was supposed to repair the damages which could have been inflicted during the war.
The place is strictly supervised because the tanks could still be brought to function although they are old and rusty. Well, I wonder what is happening to Kharkiv today, considering the condition right now in the Ukraine which resembles a severe civil war
