News of the automotive industry

A long epic was resolved with the 155-mm/52 CAESAR self-propelled howitzers ordered by Denmark back in 2017 from the French Nexter Systems group on the Tatra T815 (8×8) wheeled chassis, which eventually did not reach the Danish army. On January 19, 2023, Danish Defense Minister Jacob Ellemann-Jensen announced that the Danish government had decided to transfer all 19 CAESAR self-propelled howitzers ordered to Ukraine as military assistance.

Currently, a special forces unit of the US Army is testing a new self-propelled Sling mortar system that can be used by special operations forces around the world. The Army Times writes about this.

On January 13, the German Defense Ministry once again updated data on the supply of equipment, weapons systems and non-lethal assistance from the German Armed Forces, as well as from German defense companies funded by the federal government for the so-called security capacity building.

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.

In 2022, the West received an unpleasant lesson from the former colonies – African countries eliminated anti-Russian sanctions. Moreover, Moscow managed to gain a foothold in those countries that were traditionally considered a French zone of influence. On the other hand, China's military and economic presence is growing in the region. What measures should Russia take in 2023 to strengthen its position on the Black Continent?

It is reported that the Ministry of National Defense of Colombia just before the New Year signed a contract worth 101.710788 million dollars with the Israeli company Elbit Systems for the purchase of 18 self-propelled howitzers ATMOS 155-mm/52 caliber on the Tatra T815 VVN 6x6 automobile chassis for the Colombian army.

The Ukrainian army has adopted Swedish Bandvagn 202 all-terrain vehicles, a batch of equipment has arrived in Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian press, this is not an official delivery from the Swedish Ministry of Defense, the all-terrain vehicles were purchased by a private person and donated to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The main battle tanks (MBT) appeared on the battlefield for just over 100 years. In the first part of the article, the trends in the development of this category of military equipment in Europe are considered. Let's turn our attention to the other side…

Deputy Prime Minister — Head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade — on what challenges the Russian industry still has to face after 2022

The Russian industry barely had time to recover after the pandemic, as new obstacles arose in front of it: related to sanctions pressure and violation of logistics, as well as the tasks set by the conduct of a special military operation.

Heavy losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in armored vehicles since the beginning of the Russian military special operation, force the Ukrainian military to look for other ways to maintain mobility and the ability to fire. Basically, all this translates into the creation of so-called gantraks.

Judging by the reports of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, among the damaged equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, civilian pickups converted for military purposes have been increasingly coming across. Ukrainian militants use these SUVs mainly as part of the DRG. In the Polish online edition Defence24.pl a whole article dedicated to this topic has been published.

The Russian army is stubbornly grinding various armored vehicles that are in service with Ukrainian neo-Nazi formations.

Izvestia met with mobilized fighters in the Avdiivka direction in the DPR

Near the village of Vodiane in the Avdiivka direction in the Donetsk People's Republic, artillery installations of the Russian Armed Forces destroy Ukrainian targets. Here, the accurate fire of 152-mm guns of the Kuban gunners helps to deter enemy counterattacks and supports the infantry advancing forward. Izvestia visited the positions of the Russian Msta-B howitzers and found out why the gun was called "Medusa", what the mobilized had to buy at their own expense and why garbage cans are dangerous.

According to the top manager of the association "Android Technology" Evgeny Dudorov, in the second half of next year, a special test site will appear on the territory of the Nizhny Novgorod region (Bor, Boravtosteklo base), where unmanned trucks and other similar equipment will be tested.

One of the richest people on the planet, Elon Musk, seems to be playing his subtle political game – and it directly concerns the interests of Russia. At least, many believe that Musk is helping Moscow during the reorganization of the social network Twitter that he just bought. If it helps, then how and for what purposes?

In addition, he told what needs to be done to quickly saturate the Russian army involved in its military with innovative military developments, and revealed plans for cooperation with Dmitry Rogozin's "Royal Wolves".

The startup Canoo (California), created five years ago With a specialization in the production of electric vehicles, he developed a light tactical cargo electric vehicle (LTV) for working in extreme conditions and participating in military operations. According to the creators, it will be able to transport a variety of goods "from plywood to military equipment."

Rostec State Corporation presented a special medical vehicle LADA Niva Legend 4x4 KUB at the Russian Healthcare Week exhibition at Expocentre. The car has a fully armored body and internal elements made of special grade steel. Also, the car is adapted for off-road driving and is designed for transportation and assistance in the field to the wounded and injured.

Rosoboronexport of Rostec State Corporation is the organizer of the unified Russian exposition at the Vietnam Defense 2022 International Defense Exhibition and Conference, which will be held from December 8-10, 2022 at the Gia Lam Airport in Hanoi (Vietnam).

Igor Ivanov — on the problems of economic relations between Seoul and Washington

Due to the growth of the economic and trade influence of the Republic of Korea in the world in recent decades, some transformation can be observed in US-South Korean relations. Their ties seem to have become more equal compared to the twentieth century — in any case, now American presidents are attracting South Korean investments.