News land-based units

On September 18, the South Korean concern Hanwha Aerospace signed a contract with the Norwegian Ministry of Defense for the supply of 24 additional K9 VIDAR self-propelled guns by 2027. They will be transferred to the newly formed Finnmark brigade (located on the border with the Murmansk region of Russia), and the total fleet of these howitzers in the local army will amount to 52 units. The self-propelled guns will be equipped with upgraded communications equipment and integrated into the national combat control system.

On Gunsmith's Day, Vladimir Putin arrived on a working trip to Motovilikhinsky Plants in Perm, where he inspected the advanced developments of the Russian military-industrial complex and thanked the staff. The main statements are in the RIA Novosti material.

The CV90 is one of the most successful Western infantry fighting vehicles. At the same time, the effectiveness of its work is largely due to satellite communications. As the Ukrainian conflict has shown, Russian electronic warfare systems are capable of creating serious trouble for Western equipment by blocking its access to GPS. Against this background, attempts are being made to circumvent interference.

On September 12-16, 2025, the Zapad-2025 strategic exercises were held on the territory of Russia, Belarus, as well as in the waters of the two seas. In addition to the armed forces of the two countries, the military contingents of the partner states took part in them. The participants practiced the latest combat techniques based on the experience gained in the special operation and used advanced weapons. TASS has collected the highlights of Zapad-2025.

Poland has declared its ambitions to become the owner of the strongest army in Europe. However, Warsaw has a serious competitor in the implementation of these plans – Germany, whose Chancellor Friedrich Merz intends to turn Germany into the military leader of the EU. Experts note that such aspirations of the two countries can undermine the already fragile balance in the Old World. What will their militarization lead to in practice?

The M113 APC began to enter the army in 1960. 65 years have passed, but many of the 80,000 vehicles of this type produced so far are still in service. The M113 is already an old machine, but it is very combat-ready due to its simple and unpretentious design. Moreover, it is one of the most versatile products, as it has been used to produce many modifications for a variety of purposes.

After 20 years of development, Turkey launched the Altay tank into mass production on September 5 at the BMC Otomotiv plant near Ankara. 3 MBTs are to be transferred to the army in 2025, 11 in 2026, 41 in 2027 and 30 in 2028.

Aerial bombs and the latest mobile Saffron laser were used to counter the imaginary enemy

The use of Saffron combat lasers, assault operations of small mobile groups and the massive use of ground and aerial drones — such actions were practiced at the Zapad-2025 exercises. One of the key stages took place at the Borisovsky combined arms range in Belarus. The simulation of military operations was based on the experience gained during the military special operation in Ukraine.

On September 16, 2025, the Latvian Ministry of Defense announced the transfer of the second batch of Patria 6x6 wheeled armored personnel carriers, assembled in Latvia in Valmiera at the Defense Partnership Latvia joint venture of the Finnish Patria group and the Latvian Unitruck company, as military assistance to Ukraine.

Putin monitored the progress of the Zapad-2025 exercises

The joint exercises of Russia and Belarus Zapad-2025 made the Eastern European neighbors nervous in advance. Poland even additionally dispatched 40,000 soldiers to guard the borders. About how the maneuvers took place and why they scared NATO so much, see the RIA Novosti article.

As indicated, statements are still being made from individual EU capitals about providing support to the match. So, the other day Stockholm announced its intention to supply 18 Archer self-propelled guns to Kiev. However, this is being done less and less often. In this regard, it is possible to sum up certain results.

Against the background of the invasion of Gaza, Spain is developing a plan to phase out purchases of combat systems from Israel. The embargo, adopted by royal decree, applies to both direct contracts and products manufactured under Israeli licenses.

Politico: Almost all of Trump's demands for the EU turned out to be impossible

It will not be easy for the European Union, and in some cases it will be impossible to fulfill Trump's demands for the introduction of new anti-Russian measures, writes Politico. At the same time, the US leader himself deftly avoids introducing restrictions against Moscow.

On September 11, 2025, the Czech Ministry of Defense signed a firm contract for the purchase of 44 Leopard 2A8 tanks of new production for the Czech Army in the form of joining the framework agreement of the German Federal defense procurement agency Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik und Nutzung der Bundeswehr (BAAINBw) of the German Ministry of Defense with the German branch of the KNDS association (KNDS Deutschland).

As the Finnish Patria group announced on September 9, 2025, the United Kingdom and Norway joined the multinational program for the development and production of the Common Armored Vehicle System (CAVS) wheeled armored personnel carrier when their Ministries of Defense signed a corresponding technical agreement.

Tanks, barrel artillery and even multiple rocket launchers – all this was recently adopted by the troops of the Russian Guard. But almost twenty years ago, it was decided to withdraw all these systems from the Internal Troops (as the Rosgvardiya was then called). Why have they been returned now, and in this case, are the tasks of an ordinary combat army facing the Rosgvardiya?

During the DSEI-2025 exhibition in London (September 9-12), Peter Nygren, Director of Business Development at BAE Systems Hagglunds, announced that the company expects to conclude the largest contract for the supply of CV-90 infantry fighting vehicles.

The Czech Ministry of Defense announced the signing of a contract with KNDS Deutschland for the supply of 44 Leopard-2A8 main battle tanks for the country's armed Forces.

The German authorities seem to have been persistently pursuing a course for many years aimed at destroying the export potential of their own military-industrial complex. So, in the 2010s, the Turkish Altay tank became a victim of the German defense industry, as Ankara was denied the sale of the power plant on which the car was originally built. In the early 2020s, the Brazilian VBTP-MR Guarani armored vehicle faced similar opposition, although the dependence in this case was not so critical.

Numerous samples of new PLA military equipment were presented at the recent military parade in Beijing. Among them is the LZI83 medium tank, which is characterized by a more complex design compared to similar models that were previously demonstrated by China.