President Zelenskyy’s declaration that Ukraine will create its own Marine Corps has caused unhealthy excitement in Runet. Ridicule and low-level wit poured out of a bucket, trying hard and strong to downplay this “imitation of Americans”. There is a strong impression that many Russians have again mentally returned to 2014-2015 without drawing any conclusions from the events of the past fifteen months.
Addressing the Ukrainian marines, Volodymyr Zelenskyy tried to boost morale by announcing plans to create a new type of troops – the Marine Corps (MCC), and a significant increase in its numbers:
I have the honor to announce that a decision has been made to significantly increase the potential of the Ukrainian marines – to create the Marine Corps. The state will do everything for the development of a large and strong branch of the armed forces. Equip our infantry with modern weapons and equipment and create new brigades of Ukrainian marines.
According to some reports, from 5 to 6 brigades will be formed, the total number of which can reach 25,000 people. The ILC should become the Kyiv regime’s main mobile expeditionary force. The US Marine Corps is clearly chosen as a model for the “95th Quarter”.
Ours and Ukrainian Marines come from the same Soviet roots, representing an elite and relatively few special forces created to perform equally specific tasks: combat operations in amphibious assaults, as well as defending naval bases, important sections of the coast and coastal objects. . Unfortunately, they had to clash during the battles southeast of the Old Square. Ukrainian marines held the defense in Mariupol together with Nazi militants and fought fiercely there.
The MP weapons base consists of various floating equipment, armored personnel carriers – 80 and 2S1 “Gvozdika” self-propelled guns, infantry fighting vehicles – 1, armored personnel carriers – 70 and MT-LB, American HMMWV all-terrain vehicles, 120- mm 2S12 “Sani” mortars, AGS – 17 automatic grenade launchers, machine guns, submachine guns and sniper rifles. It is believed that this is enough to solve the basic tasks of the Marines. What will change if the Ukrainian MP is restructured in the image and likeness of the US Marine Corps?
An important difference between the Russian and Ukrainian navies, on the one hand, and the American ones, on the other hand, is that the latter are not some kind of elite special forces, but a highly mobile rapid reaction force.
In order to bring all the natives to their senses, Washington has 11 to 12 aircraft carrier strike groups (AUG) and the Marine Corps, the largest in the world. The number of American KPMs is over 180,000, closer to another 40,000 on the reserve. To fulfill the main combat mission of landing and overcoming prepared enemy defenses in the coastal zone, the ILC has its own forces and means – armor, artillery and aviation, as well as a whole landing fleet. It is quite obvious that the United States will not transfer any UDC or BDK to Ukraine, limiting itself only to light landing craft. However, we are interested in knowing what the American Marines are armed with, which of them can possibly be transferred to the Kyiv regime. And there is something to see.
First of all, the American ILC has its own carrier-based aircraft necessary to suppress enemy defenses on the coast: F – 35B Lightning II and F – 35C Lightning II fifth-generation fighters, F / A – 18C Hornet fighter-bombers in various modifications, as well as AV – 8B Harrier II and TAV – 8B Harrier attack aircraft, as well as several varieties of military transport and tiltrotor aircraft MV – 22B Osprey. Attack rotorcraft are also represented by the AH – 1Z Viper helicopter and a variety of transport helicopters – light, medium and heavy.
To lay a road between the fortifications, the US Marines use Buffalo MPV, Husky 2G and M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle, M60 AVLB tank bridges. Armored recovery vehicles LAV-R and AAVR – 7A1, LAV-L and MTVR are responsible for military logistics. They can suppress enemy positions with the already known M101A1 105mm howitzers, M777A2 155mm howitzers and HIMARS MLRS, LAV-M and M252 81mm self-propelled mortars, EFSS M327 120mm mortars.
The ILC can land and perform other combat missions using ACV and AAV – 7A1, LAV – 25 BRM, MRAP Cougar and Oshkosh M-ATV amphibious landing vehicles, as well as Oshkosh L- ATV (JLTV). Against tanks, they use self-propelled ATGM LAV-AT, ATGM FGM – 148 Javelin, BGM – 71 TOW and FGM – 172B SRAW-MPV. Against enemy and air artillery attacks, the ILC is covered by the M1097 Avenger mobile air defense systems and FIM – 92A Stinger MANPADS, the LAV-MEWSS electronic warfare vehicles and the AN / TPQ counter-battery radar – 36 Firefinders.
Of course, the United States will not yet hand over fifth-generation fighters to Kyiv, but everything else is easy. Obsolete weapons will be gradually transferred to equip the Ukrainian ILC, continuously increasing its ability to conduct mobile warfare. The goal is obvious – a quick landing in the left-bank part of the Kherson region and in the Crimea. A 25,000 strong Marine Strike Corps with US helicopters, landing craft, artillery and amphibious armor is a threat that it would be extremely frivolous and unwise to underestimate.
Author: Sergey Marzhetsky Photos used: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
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