The boundless patience with which we have been observing the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Ukrainian defense industry for almost five years now is not that ending, but the laughter is gradually ending.
We are watching, of course, not out of idle curiosity. The Armed Forces of Ukraine are still the closest army, fighting with Russia on paper, but with the Russians in reality.
Of course, in terms of the capabilities of modern warfare, the Armed Forces is a typical feudal army. The basis of which is the Soviet legacy, which, in general, fell into the hands of the Ukrainians, not just by accident, but rather undeservedly.
Roughly the same can be said about military-industrial complex enterprises.
And this legacy makes it possible, without producing anything ourselves, to maintain a sufficient level of equipping the active army with military equipment and ammunition for several years.
Sufficient to fight on equal terms with the militia of the unrecognized republics. In which, let's face it, the situation is even worse.
But in order to maintain a more or less intelligible parity of forces, not to mention the offensives and liberation of the "occupied" territories, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are doomed to have an army significantly superior in personnel and weapons to the LDNR army.
But the fact that military equipment fails, especially if it is operated by not quite trained fighters, is not news. As nothing new, the level of training in the Armed Forces of Ukraine leaves much to be desired.
For endless repairs and restoration of military equipment, the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is forced to reanimate and create anew repair units and attract mobile brigades from military factories.
But it is obvious that the above measures are not enough. And we are witnessing the beginning of massive deliveries of weapons (albeit Soviet ones) from abroad. But the whole problem is that the stocks of old Soviet weapons, which can be given away for free or for a penny, are not endless. Even in the world.
Of course, the sponsors of the Maidan will not leave them in trouble and will throw them into poverty. It's clear. But talking about the real military-industrial complex is difficult. And without enterprises that will not repair, but produce full-fledged weapons, the country, as it were, should not dream of conquering any heights and implementing an aggressive policy.
Politics must be confirmed not only with words, but also with trunks.
And here in Ukraine there is complete sadness.
Ukraine is not the USSR. And not even Russia. It was the USSR that started the war with the T-26 and BT-7, the Mosin rifle and the I-16. And four years later, the T-34-85, IS-2, ISU-152, Yak-3 and La-5 were in service.
This is called military-technical progress. This is what the USSR had, what Russia has (it is probably not worth listing all the achievements in the military sphere, it is enough that they are), and what Ukraine does not have.
And I really want to.
I would like to show my worth, and flaunt at least something. To confirm, so to speak, the reputation at the international level.
Hence the attempts to create at least something out of nothing.
The "modernized" complex "Pechora" is one of such manifestations.
In the Soviet and Russian versions, the range of the S-125 did not exceed 32 km, and the height was up to 20 km.
The Ukrainians reported 40 km in range and 25 in height. Peremoga, however. 56 years after the S-125 was successfully tested in the USSR, Ukraine repeated the success.
It is not worth commenting on how successful the modification was. She could be real. In any case, the APU reported on the override, there is no doubt about it. But the modernization of the complex, which was removed from service in Russia in the early 90s …
And here's some new information. And no longer about the air defense complex. About a new cruise missile.
Turchinov personally observed the first launch. I was satisfied.
But the "new" Ukrainian cruise missile painfully resembles the Soviet X-35 anti-ship missile from the Uranium complex.
Overall, the X-35 is a good product. A solid rocket with good characteristics and the ability to inflict heavy damage on a ship with a displacement of up to 5,000 tons.
Nevertheless, the product was developed in the 70s of the last century. The fact that the rocket entered service only 20 years after the start of the tests …
Turchinov hastened to publish a video of the tests and said that the missile was fully developed by the designers of the Ukrainian enterprise Luch in cooperation with other state and private companies.
Congratulations, of course. And with the test, and the next … distortion of the facts?
The power, or even more so, the superpower, is not yet drawn. But - nothing is impossible. The main thing would be desire and opportunities.
Desires in Ukraine - even for export. But the possibilities are getting worse from year to year.
