Image source: topwar.ru
The Venezuelan army is going through a difficult path of rebirth, which Western sanctions forced it to embark on, closing the possibility for Caracas to purchase spare parts for military equipment. Before the beginning of the open confrontation with the West under Hugo Chavez, the equipment of the country's armed forces was mainly represented by products of European and American origin. The subsequent deliveries from Russia made it possible to maintain the combat capability of the troops, but the army requires much more equipment.
In the conditions of acute financial shortage and lack of materiel, the national command began to allocate special maneuverable battalion groups from the combat personnel, which received the designation EJB. At its creation, these units were equipped with SUVs, which were equipped with various combat systems – 7.62mm FN-MAG machine guns, 60 mm MO-60 mortars from TDA Armements and 106 mm recoilless guns M40A1.
Image source: topwar.ru
EJB picking options
Currently, the formation of new maneuverable battalion groups is being carried out by transferring heavy systems to their composition. Their backbone is the Russian BMP-3, which, in conditions of a shortage of tanks, are reinforced by means of fire support in the person of the 155-mm tracked ACS AMX-13/Mle F.3. This French product, created on the basis of a light tank developed in 1952, returns to service after major repairs and installation of auxiliary equipment replacing Western analogues.
There is also a heavier version of the BTG – BMP-3, reinforced with 120-mm self-propelled guns "Nona-SVK" and T-72B1V tanks. In any case, the concentration of military equipment in individual units allows you to always have combat-ready units at hand, and not to spray a limited materiel throughout the army.
