Guns and machine guns. Outdated weapons of the Ukrainian army as a trend
Army units have modern weaponsbut not everyone is so lucky. Photo by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
Ukraine is preparing for a mythical Russian attack and is trying to urgently rearm. Some of the necessary products and samples come from abroad, while others are taken from our own warehouses. At the same time, all available weapons are used, including those that have long been obsolete and decommissioned. Such processes provide some restoration of defense capability, but indicate the presence of serious problems.
Machine gun problems
With the start of the civil war in 2014, the Ukrainian army found that the available stocks of small arms, created back in the days of the USSR, had noticeably depleted during the years of independence. Because of this, the mobilization and formation of new structures and units faced the characteristic problem of a lack of modern weapons. Machine guns and machine guns were used not only with the latest modifications, but also with older weapons.
Now Ukraine is conducting yet another preparation to repel the mythical Russian aggression - and again faces the problem of a lack of weapons. This time, specific, ambiguous and outdated arsenals are being formed for the newly created "territorial defense" recruited from civilians.
"Maxim" in the dugout. Photo Twitter.com/RALee85
Vivid examples of the lack of weapons could be observed already in 2014-15, during the active phase of the civil war. Thus, long-discontinued Maxim machine guns were repeatedly seen at Ukrainian positions and training grounds. At the end of January, such a machine gun once again hit the lens - and became the reason for publications in the foreign press.
"Maxim" has long been outdated and has a number of serious drawbacks. However, army units often have no choice and are forced to use what they have. At the same time, they are trying to get maximum results from old machine guns. So, they are placed on stationary firing points, where long-term shooting is required and it is possible to provide a tray of cartridges and water.
Also in 2014, another curious outdated sample was spotted in the “ATO zone”. A fighter or fighters of one of the Ukrainian formations used a DP-27 light machine gun. The exact circumstances of the return to service of this weapon are unknown, but it is clear that it was used due to a lack of newer models.
Training lesson on the topic of the DP-27 machine gun for territorial defense. Frame from Youtube video / sapeurgalanet
At the end of January, a video recording of a training session of the territorial defense unit of the city of Brovary (Kyiv region) was published. Volunteers called upon to defend the metropolitan region were taught to handle Degtyarev. Probably, now such a machine gun is regularly in service with the unit.
Scarce samples
It is reported that the lack of weapons in the territorial defense can be partially covered by the personal weapons of the participating citizens. The “militias” are already showing off their rifles and carbines, mostly modern models. At the same time, it cannot be ruled out that over time, “grandfather double-barreled shotguns” will appear in the units, incl. archaic models.
In recent days, Ukraine has been regularly showing training of the civilian population, and often such news cause laughter. More successful units have the opportunity to conduct "exercises" with real machine guns and other weapons. Others use visually and ergonomically similar airsoft systems. However, the "contour models" of army weapons, neatly sawn out of plywood, attract the most attention.
Training with simulators is safe and fun. Photo voennoedelo.com
Plywood "machine guns" and other substitutes for real weapons make it possible to train new personnel and even ensure the safety of classes. However, their appearance may be associated not only with security, but also with the lack of full-fledged weapons. What, in this case, the volunteers will have to fight is a big question for the structures responsible for supply. However, the answer to this question has already been proposed. The "militia" plan to transfer weapons from the stocks of the army.
Anti-tank difficulties
Ukraine has its own production of anti-tank missile systems, and the army has a fairly large number of such weapons. However, in recent years, the Ukrainian leadership has paid much more attention to foreign designs. By all means, Kiev tried to get American portable anti-tank systems and eventually achieved its goal. In recent weeks, there have been new deliveries of foreign-made anti-tank weapons in the amount of hundreds or thousands of pieces.
Despite receiving a large number of modern missiles, the Ukrainian army continues to use old artillery systems. The other day, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine showed the exercises of the ground forces at one of the training grounds. Together with other means, the MT-12R Ruta anti-tank gun was used in the event. This is a 100 mm gun with a 1A31 radar sight, capable of using various types of projectiles and 9M117 or Stugna missiles.
MT-12R gun during a recent exercise. Photo by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
The MT-12 entered service in the early seventies, and for its time, the gun and its missiles were a very successful model, capable of hitting existing Tanks. However, to date, "Ruta" is morally obsolete and cannot fully solve the previous tasks. Why it is still used in full-fledged exercises is unclear. Perhaps this is due to the lack of the desired number of more modern weapons.
General obsolescence
It should be noted that "Maxim" or "Ruta" are only the most striking examples of the problems of the Ukrainian army. The overwhelming majority of the materiel of the Ukrainian army of all classes is still of Soviet origin or goes back to it. Accordingly, these products are older and often do not meet modern requirements. These trends are observed in the field of small arms, artillery, aviation and, with some exceptions, in armored vehicles.
The reasons for this are quite simple. From the USSR, independent Ukraine received a fairly developed military industry and connections with enterprises of other states. They could not be used in an optimal way, which is why the full development of the army on its own was not carried out. The modernization of the armed forces through bulk purchases of imports also proved impossible due to limited economic potential.
British NLAW grenade launchers from a recent delivery. Photo by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
As a result, the Ukrainian army, throughout the three decades of its independent existence, relied mainly on stocks of weapons and equipment left over from Soviet times. If necessary, stocks of newer products were used and spent, and in addition, existing samples were traded quite actively. As a result, stocks of late samples were gradually reduced, which in the future should have led to problems along the line of rearmament. And the regular results of these processes have been observed since 2014.
It is easy to see that the situation has not fundamentally changed over the past eight years. Attempts to establish domestic production of the necessary products have largely failed, and opportunities for the purchase of foreign products remain limited. Nevertheless, it is possible to get help from foreign partners in the form of direct deliveries or purchases on preferential terms.
No special prospects
Thus, despite all the attempts and processes of recent years, the overall situation with the materiel in the Ukrainian army remains difficult and generally does not encourage optimism. Stocks of armaments, ammunition and materiel are gradually being used up, and replenishment in the required volumes is impossible. Foreign aid also does not allow us to solve this problem.
In connection with such problems, the army and other armed structures are forced to get from warehouses and return to operation long-obsolete samples. In addition, in some situations it is necessary to use not a weapon, but its replacement. So far, all this can be considered isolated cases, but in the near future such cases may develop into a real trend. The only question is the timing of such a transformation.
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