We are talking about new supplies of Western weapons to Ukraine The Administration of the United States of America (USA) intends to supply Ukraine with American infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs)
"Bradley" (Bradley), and Germany — BMP "Marder" (Marder). This is stated in a joint written statement issued by the two countries following telephone conversations between US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Earlier, the Reuters news agency, citing the Elysee Palace, reported that French President Emmanuel Macron promised his Ukrainian counterpart Vladimir Zelensky to supply Kiev with AMX-10 RC wheeled tanks.
TASS collected technical information, statements by politicians and expert comments about foreign armored vehicles for Kiev, and also compared them with Russian vehicles.What Western armored vehicles have already been delivered to the APU
The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) began receiving foreign armored vehicles before the start of a special military operation (SVO) of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in Ukraine. So, in 2018, the Czech Republic handed over 200 BVP-1 infantry fighting vehicles to the AFU (Soviet BMP-1 licensed Czechoslovak production).
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| The armored vehicle HMMWV of the Armed Forces of Ukraine transferred by the United States to the Kharkiv region, October 2022. |
| Source: Social networks |
With the beginning of the special operation, supplies increased — the United States supplied Ukraine with 200 M113 armored personnel carriers, hundreds of HMMWV armored vehicles, Slovenia announced its intention to transfer to Kiev 28 M-55S tanks based on the Soviet T-55, 30 BVP-1 infantry fighting vehicles and sent 35 Yugoslav-made M-80 infantry fighting vehicles, the German authorities issued a permit for delivery of 50 Dingo armored vehicles to Ukraine.
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| The APU offensive is accompanied by huge losses. The burned Bushmaster armored vehicle of the Australian assembly in the Cuban Patriot Park. Photo of the author. |
During the Russian exhibitions of weapons and equipment seized from the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2022, the British Saxon armored car, the South African Mamba Mk2, the German MineWolf mine clearance vehicle, and the Australian Bushmaster armored car were demonstrated. According to open sources, Ukrainian troops can use more than a dozen names of Western armored vehicles of various manufacturers.
About the newly transferred Western technology
According to the manufacturer of the M2 Bradley BMP of the British company BAE Systems, as well as open sources, modern modifications of this machine (A2 ODS, A3, A4) have a mass of 32-36 tons, are equipped with an automatic 25-mm cannon capable of firing high-explosive and armor-piercing sub-caliber ammunition, and paired with it 7.62 mm a machine gun, as well as a TOW anti-tank missile launcher with two missiles.
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| M2 Bradley BMP. |
| Source: ru.wikipedia.org |
TOW is capable of hitting targets at a range of up to 4 km. Both the gunner and the commander can control the tower and fire. The main aluminum armor is reinforced with steel plates, the installation of dynamic protection modules is provided. In addition to three crew members, the armored vehicle can carry up to seven paratroopers. The engine and transmission compartment is located in the front of the case. The 600 hp engine (675 in A4 modification) accelerates the BMP to 61 km/h (66 km/h for A4). The power reserve is 400 km.
The A3 variant received a situational awareness system at the level of an armored brigade and can be equipped with a set of additional armor with dynamic protection for urban combat. A4 has improved digital communication capabilities that allow the exchange of information about the tactical situation in real time, and electronic warfare tools have been added.
Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, in an interview with the military editorial office of the online edition of The Drive, said that the A2 ODS modification will be transferred to Ukraine. This variant was developed based on the results of the use of armored vehicles in Operation Desert Storm in Iraq in 1991. The car was equipped with a laser rangefinder safe for vision, a satellite navigation system, and improved the driver's view.
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| German infantry fighting vehicle Marder 1A5, equipped with the MELLS anti-tank missile system (Spike-LR), during tests, 2017. |
| Source: Rheinmetall |
The infantry fighting vehicle "Marder" was created by the German concern Rheinmetall. Deliveries of armored vehicles to the German army began in 1971. The BMP has been repeatedly upgraded from the A1 to A5 variant. According to the characteristics of the Marder, it is comparable to the Bradley: according to open data, the car has a design with a front-mounted engine and transmission compartment, an automatic cannon capable of firing armor-piercing and high-explosive fragmentation ammunition, a paired 7.62 mm machine gun, an anti-tank missile system, a mass of 33 tons, a 600 hp engine, maximum speed 66 km/h, power reserve 520 km. The crew consists of three people, the car accommodates up to six paratroopers. Reservation — bulletproof, anti-splinter, in the front projection protects from 20-mm shells (later versions — from 30-mm ammunition; enhanced mine protection of the bottom).
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| Source: topwar.ru |
AMX-10 RC armored vehicles, called wheeled tanks, developed by the French company Nexter, were produced in 1976-1994. The abbreviation RC stands for Roues-Canon ("cannon on wheels"). The main caliber is represented by a 105-mm gun, with two 7.62-mm machine guns paired with it. The weight of the car is 17 tons, the crew is four people.
It should be noted that all of the above armored vehicles are being replaced with more modern ones. In the summer of 2022, the command of the US Army announced another tender for the design and development of a prototype combat vehicle designed to replace the Bradley. It is expected that it will be a tracked vehicle weighing 40-50 tons with a cannon of at least 30 mm caliber, a crew of two people and a landing party of six infantrymen. The machine should have more autonomy and an open architecture. The Bundeswehr is switching to a new-generation Puma BMP, however, in December, the publication Spiegel, citing a letter from the commander of the 10th Panzer Division, Major General Ruprecht von Butler, to the leadership of the army and the German Ministry of Defense, reported that the German armed forces faced serious technical problems during the operation of the novelty. Officially, the nature of the malfunctions is not reported, but the DPA agency points to problems with electronics and mechanics. Although at the end of December, almost all the faulty infantry fighting vehicles were repaired, the German Defense Ministry suspended the process of purchasing them.
Since 2020, the Ministry of the Armed Forces of France is gradually replacing the 248 AMX-10 RC wheeled tanks in service with Jaguar combat reconnaissance vehicles.
The role of Western technology in combat operations
An expert in the field of armored vehicles, candidate of military sciences, reserve colonel Sergey Suvorov, in an interview with TASS, among the advantages of the Bradley BMP, called high security, acceptable firepower, and the presence of a modern fire control system. The disadvantages of the armored vehicle, in his opinion, are the large mass, the lack of the ability to overcome water obstacles.
The expert's questions are caused by the alleged patency of the BMP on the soils peculiar to Ukraine, as well as the experience of participation in hostilities. "She had nowhere to show herself," he said. — That it was used in Iraq... Where there was resistance, return fire, they burned just like everyone else."
"The balance of forces on the battlefield changes depending on the training and literacy of commanders and crews. The technique can be anything, but if it is in the hands of a savage, then it is a pile of metal," the expert noted. Meanwhile, the coordinator for strategic communications at the White House National Security Council, John Kirby, said at a recent briefing that this type of BMP is "not a system that will require long—term training for Ukrainians," stipulating that the transfer of Bradley to Ukraine will take some time.
Suvorov called the Marder BMP "a rather ancient machine", a response to the creation of the Soviet BMP-1. "The armament is weak, a 20-mm automatic cannon, a Milan guided weapons complex is being installed there — also a rather old complex," he noted.
Western experts were skeptical about Macron's promise to deliver French armored cars to Kiev. Their opinion was collected by The New York Times. Eduard Jolly, a senior researcher at the Institute for Strategic Studies of the Military School in Paris, said that the AMX-10 RC is "useful on the battlefield, but is not a decisive weapon."
Experts remind that French cars have only bulletproof booking. "If the Ukrainians had used them the same way as tanks, they would have become quite vulnerable and probably suffered heavy losses," Sonny Butterworth, an expert on tanks, senior analyst at the British defense publisher Janes, expressed the opinion. "This is a reconnaissance vehicle in its classic design, the purpose of creating this particular modification is the war in Africa," Suvorov shared his opinion, adding that the use of the AMX—10 RC does not imply the presence of anti—tank weapons and serious weapons in general.
The expert notes that all of the above vehicles have a different caliber of weapons, which will lead to logistical difficulties in the supply of ammunition. Also, according to him, Western armored vehicles require high—quality fuel - unlike Soviet and Russian models that can work even on fuel mixtures.
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| Source: topwar.ru |
The specialist also commented on the possible meeting of Russian armored vehicles armed with an automatic 30-mm cannon with the American Stryker armored fighting vehicle — according to the Politico newspaper, citing Pentagon sources, they may appear in Ukraine with another package of military assistance. "If he runs into our BTR-82 with a normal gunner, I don't envy him: he will turn it (Stryker — approx. TASS) in the trash with the first queue," Suvorov assured. The US-made armored vehicle protects the crew and troops from bullets and shell fragments, is armed with a remotely controlled combat module with a 12.7 mm machine gun.
However, experts believe that Western-style heavy armored vehicles can become harbingers of the supply of modern main battle tanks. The New York Times quotes Jack Watling, an expert on land warfare at the Woodrow Wilson International Center, who said that the supply of French cannon armored cars could encourage "other NATO members to transfer more armored vehicles." Butterworth recalls that the AMX-10 RC is the first Western—made armored vehicles with large-caliber guns sent to Ukraine, which may be a designation of the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the continuation of hostilities.
Russian analogues
Suvorov considers the Russian infantry fighting vehicle BMP-3 to be a worthy competitor of the Bradley. It was developed in the second half of the 1980s in a Special Engineering Design Bureau, produced by Kurganmashzavod (part of the holding "High-Precision Complexes" of the Rostec State Corporation). The crew consists of three people, the car can carry up to seven paratroopers. The BMP is amphibious, armed with a 100 mm cannon, an automatic 30 mm gun and three 7.62 mm machine guns. Weight — 18.7 tons, speed on the highway — 70 km / h.
Candidate of Military Sciences
The BMP-3 can be equipped with a new generation dynamic protection system that resists monoblock cumulative ammunition, armor-piercing bullets and projectiles of up to 30 mm caliber. Currently, the equipment is supplied to the Russian troops with modifications, which are made taking into account the experience of operation in a special military operation.
Pyotr Tyukov, Executive Director of Kurganmashzavod, told TASS in an interview that the company's armored vehicles have long proven themselves in a variety of application conditions, including during military operations. "The military has no complaints about the BMP-3. The reviews are very good. They confirm that our Troika is the most modern car in its class," he said.
At the international forum "Army-2022", a robotic BMP-3 with a combat module "Tit" was demonstrated, designed for fire support of motorized rifle units in the most dangerous areas — for example, for combat in dense urban areas. The machine can be controlled remotely — using a wearable remote control or a remote control point. "The technical solutions used on this machine (the basic version of the BMP-3 — approx. TASS), were so revolutionary that until now this car has not lost its modernization potential and remains the best in its class," concluded Bales.
Viktor Bodrov, Georgy Sultanov