When Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his forces into Ukraine a year ago, most observers predicted a quick victory for Moscow in this war.
However, these early predictions of Russian success have not materialized due to a variety of factors, most notably the supply of arms to Ukraine by the West.
Here are the 3 types of weapons that helped turn the tide of the war in Ukraine, according to an analysis by Shark al-Awsat cited by CNN;
Baykar Bayraktar TB2
The Turkish-made Baykar Bayraktar TB2 armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UCAV) has become one of the world’s best-known UCAVs due to its use in the Ukrainian war.
Ukrainian forces skillfully used these UCAVs, which effectively neutralized many advancing Russian forces, including tanks, artillery, helicopters and missile defenses, as well as key naval targets.
It is worth noting that a Bayraktar UCAV contributed to the sinking of the Russian cruiser Moskva in the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
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The Bayraktar TB2, described as a relatively inexpensive, off-the-shelf weapon with lethal power, records the moment it hits its targets.
The footage showed the UCAV’s missiles, laser-guided rockets and smart bombs neutralizing Russian armor, artillery and supply lines.
Samuel Bendett, a researcher at the Center for Naval Analyses Russia Studies (CNAS), told CNN early in the war that the footage captured by UCAVs was a great morale booster for Ukrainian forces.
Ukrainian soldiers even sang a song about the Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs and shared a video that went viral.
US-made Javelin anti-tank missile
At the start of the war, soldiers on both sides expected Russian armored units to enter the Ukrainian capital Kiev within days.
The Ukrainians needed an effective weapon that could limit this attack, and they found it in the Javelin, a shoulder-fired, guided anti-tank missile that could be deployed by a single person.
As the manufacturer Lockheed Martin explains, part of the Javelin’s appeal lies in its ease of use.
The person using it can fire from a building or behind a tree and get away before the Russians can react.
The Javelin is considered a ‘fire and forget’ weapon. As soon as the operator fires, he or she can run for cover while the missile is on its way to the target.
Javelin is also good at targeting the weak points of Russian tanks, namely their horizontal surfaces. Because it curves upwards after launch and falls on the target from above, it is similar to throwing a javelin.
In fact, the impact of the Javelin missiles was so great that two and a half months after the start of the war, US President Joe Biden visited the Lockheed Martin plant in Alabama that developed the missiles and praised the workforce that helped defend Ukraine.
“You are making a huge difference for the poor children under tremendous pressure and deadly fire from the Russians,” Biden said during his visit.
The Javelins had another advantage that was particularly relevant at the start of the war, namely that they were politically acceptable.
“Their low cost and their defensive use make them politically easier for other countries,” said Michael Armstrong, associate professor at Brock University. “Because governments don’t agree with sending more expensive weapons like fighter jets.
HIMARS missile systems
The US Army describes the HIMARS missile launch system, in full the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, as a ‘combat-proven, all-weather, 24/7, lethal and precision strike weapon system’.
More precisely, HIMARS is a 5-ton truck carrying a capsule that can launch six rockets almost simultaneously, send explosive warheads far beyond the front lines of the battlefield, and then quickly change position to avoid a counterattack.
“If the Javelin is the iconic weapon of the early stages of war, HIMARS is the iconic weapon of the later stages,” Mark Cancian, a consultant with the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said in January.
HIMARS fires munitions called Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) with a range of 70 to 80 kilometers.
Thanks to its GPS guidance systems, it can fire extremely accurately at a distance of about 10 meters from its target.
The easy mobility of HIMARS makes it difficult to target and its crew can consist of only 8 soldiers.
The US-made HIMARS system is also produced by Lockheed Martin.
