Did Russians steal a Soviet WWII era T-70 tank from a war memorial in Melitopol in order to send it to a frontline position in Ukraine? No, that's not true: The tank was removed from a war memorial for transportation to St. Petersburg, Russia, where it will be restored before it is returned to the memorial to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Melitopol from Nazi occupiers.
The claim appeared in a video (archived here) published on TikTok on May 24, 2023, by the account @u_bez_layna, with a caption that reads:
Russians stole a tank monument in Melitopol: it will be restored and sent to the front
And a second caption that reads:
In Melitopol, the Russian occupants dismantled the T-70 tank monument, which was installed at the Fraternal (Bratske) Cemetery memorial complex after World War II. The Soviet tank will be restored and sent to the front.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu May 25 18:01:01 2023 UTC)
Reports that Russia stole the old tank to send it to the front circulated widely in Ukrainian media, in the 'Novynarnia' news agency, and on TikTok here.
The exiled mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, first posted this story on his Telegram channel saying:
While the Ukrainian army is receiving "Leopards" and "Abrams," the occupants of Melitopol are sending a monument tank, which has been standing on its pedestal for more than half a century, for restoration and repair of the machinery.
Russia's official Tass News agency reports that the T-70 tank was removed from its pedestal for restoration and after repairs is expected to take part in a parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Melitopol from the German invaders, scheduled for October 23, 2023. Tass reports the tank will then be returned to its location at the war memorial.
The Ukrainian city of Melitopol currently remains occupied by Russian forces, with a March 3 declaration that the city would become the regional capital of the Russian-controlled part of the Zaporizhzhya territory.
