The Russian army is probably running out of weapons. In order to compensate for the wear and tear, equipment from the First World War had to be used in the Ukraine war.
Moscow/Washington, DC – Russian troops in Ukraine are reportedly forced to outdated military equipment to use – even weapons from the First World War are said to be in use. Already at the beginning of the conflict, Russian soldiers were confronted with outdated weapons. After almost two years of war in Ukraine, the problem has apparently become even worse.
Pro-Russian military bloggers in particular have recently become angry about the state of the Russian armed forces. “We see a growing crisis,” can be read in the Telegram channels, the US portal reported Newsweek. Among the weapons that the Russian military has to rely on is, for example, an infantry machine gun from the First World War. “If the troops have nothing to spend, they get outdated weapons,” said one channel of Russian soldiers and bloggers.
Weapons from the First World War “relevant” in the Ukrainian war
Nevertheless, many of the old weapons should not be underestimated. Political consultant Samuel Bendett, who specializes, among other things, in Russian military equipment, explained to the portal: “Certain weapons can be used for a very long time because they perform a function that remains the same.” The expert from the US Center for Naval Analyzes believes that many principles of warfare remained the same. Therefore, old weapons are still “relevant”.
The wear and tear on Russian howitzer tanks in particular seems enormous. It was recently estimated that Ukraine would be bombarded with up to 10,000 shots per day from around 2,000 Russian howitzers Forbes.com before. Tanks in critical zones of the front are particularly affected by wear and tear. In order to replace the barrels of the guns, long-outdated material is used here too. Stationary howitzers from the Cold War would be exploited as spare parts providers.
Russia's T-55 tanks on the front line in the Ukrainian war – Kiev also has problems
Since tanks are becoming increasingly rare for Russia, old T-55 tanks now have to serve as replacements. The almost antique machines from the 1950s were repeatedly spotted in maneuvers at the front. The T-55 tank from the Cold War is very poorly protected, meaning that even the smallest Ukrainian drones can penetrate the two centimeter thick armor. Loud Forbes So far, around 2,600 Russian tanks have been destroyed since the beginning of the conflict.
The same applies to the Ukrainian army. It is apparently not uncommon for old World War I machine guns to be mounted on pickup trucks to compensate for the constant wear and tear of war. On X (formerly Twitter) there are always pictures of old military equipment in Ukraine circulating. For example, is here an old PM1910 Maxim mounted on a pickup truck to combat drones cost-effectively. The Ukrainian army seems to rely primarily on improvisation over ingenuity.
The Maxim machine gun has been in use in Ukraine since 2016, reported for example Business Insider. Most often, the firearm is equipped with modern modifications such as sights to make aiming easier. The weapon is also very easy to use, which can also make it a practical alternative to modern machine guns in the Ukrainian war. (Simon Schröder)
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