On September 24, 2022, Ukrainian loaded a Russian T-72B (Mod 1985) on a truck outside Iyom city. This is a relatively old T-72 model
Reports of the Ukrainian war often focus on the new high-tech weapons used there.
But old-fashioned, less complex weapons, many of which were designed by the Soviet Union, were in full swing.
In Ukraine, a handful of newer weapons—such as the American-made Himas rocket and the Turkish -made TB2 attack drone—occupies the headlines, but mostly old-fashioned weapons designed in the Soviet era are still in most battles.
Haimas is a internet celebrity weapon, but the "silent majority" is not so advanced weapons from the Soviet era.
"Many of the most important weapon systems are not new," Robert Lee, an expert in the U.S. studying Russian military, said of the Ukrainian War at a recent meeting hosted by the New American Think Tank.
For example, when Russia attacks Ukraine, its air force is generally expected to play a decisive role, especially given the quantity and quality of Ukrainian aircraft.
On the contrary, Moscow's air force was almost a secondary factor in the conflict, and Russian pilots were reluctant to operate in Ukrainian airspace after heavy losses in the early stages of the conflict.
One of the reasons is the Ukrainian Soviet-era air defense system , such as S-300 and Doyle M1 air defense missiles.
In July 1995, the Ukrainian army used the Soviet-made S-300 air defense system to train in Crimea . VALERY SOLOVJEV/AFP via Getty Images
"I think the most important development is that Ukrainian air defense forces persisted and they continued to stop Russian Air Force from intercepting things outside the Ukrainian frontline," Li said. "Russia cannot fight the 'Haimas'. They cannot really and very effectively target Ukraine's command and control. They cannot stop their supplies."
"The most important reason may be systems like Doyle M1 or S-300. These are systems from the Soviet Union. They are not new. They are not fancy. They are not sexy, but they play such an important role," Lee added. "They make more modern systems like the Himas play a very important role."
reports on this war often attribute the weapons sent by the West to Ukraine to reverse the situation and enable Ukraine's strikeback to repel Russia's results.
But when Russia attacked in February 2022, these javelins and NLAW anti-tank missiles and the "Haimas" rockets were still in warehouses in the United States and Britain. Ukraine won't receive them for weeks or months, as the United States and other countries are hesitant to send large weapons such as cannons.
The weapons used by Ukraine to stop Russia from moving forward are mainly old-fashioned designs. T-72 and T-64 tanks (dating back to the 1960s and 1970s), MiG-29 fighter , and multi-barrel rocket launcher and machine gun from the Soviet era.
These devices have been updated with new electronic devices, ammunition and other upgrades. For example, Ukraine extended the range of Soviet Kh-35 anti-ship missiles and modernized its electronics to produce the native R-360 "Neptune", the missile sank the Russian Black Sea Fleet's flagship, the USS Moscow, in April 2022.
On June 12, 2022, the Ukrainian army launched BM-21 hail multiple rocket launcher in the Luhansk area.
The predecessor of Neptune missile was the "Harposky" Kh-35 anti-ship missile, which was a subsonic anti-ship missile of the Soviet era
In a military sense, the strangest thing about the Russian-Ukraine war is that the arsenals and tactics of the two armies are basically similar, and can be traced back to when Russia and Ukraine were part of the Soviet Union.
This has an unexpected benefit for Ukraine: all these captured Soviet tanks and cannons can easily be reused by Ukrainians who are accustomed to using these models.
However, this is changing. With the destruction or replacement of old Soviet equipment, Ukraine is using more and more Western weapons. While these weapons from more than 30 countries are updated and more technologically advanced, these multinational weapons will bring logistical and integration difficulties and require Ukrainian troops to adopt more Western high-tech warfare methods.
Russia faces a more challenging prospect. Moscow has deployed some new weapons, such as hypersonic missiles and T-90M tanks (one of which Ukraine has just seized in its entirety), but Russia will increasingly find it difficult to make advanced weapons due to Western sanctions that deprive it of electronics and other imported components. After the captured T-90M
lost more than 1,000 tanks in the war, Russia is using the T-62 tank that was outdated nearly half a century ago, which is a sign of despair. They are better than not having tanks, and they suggest that old-fashioned weapons may be eliminated, but they won't die.
T-62MV
This is suspected to be a foreign trade T-90S was taken out by the Russian army and used
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