1 00:00:00,568 --> 00:00:06,320 - [Announcer] Defense News is proudly  sponsored by Navy Federal Credit Union.   2 00:00:06,320 --> 00:00:10,400 If you're a member of our nation's  Armed Forces, the Department of Defense,   3 00:00:10,400 --> 00:00:14,080 or if your family is, we'd  be proud to serve you too. 4 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:19,440 - On this episode of Defense News Weekly,  an in-depth look at the weapon systems that   5 00:00:19,440 --> 00:00:25,280 have come to define the war in Ukraine. From  Turkish drones to British anti-tank weapons,   6 00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:32,000 we look at the hardware being used in battle. Also  the VA unveils a gargantuan infrastructure plan   7 00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:36,560 with dozens of medical centers possibly  closing or being reconstructed.   8 00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:42,960 Find out what's in the $2 trillion proposal.  And the German government commits to buying   9 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:49,280 a fleet of new fighters. Find out how many it  plans to purchase. It's all that and more, with   10 00:00:49,280 --> 00:00:57,840 the latest news and analysis from the Pentagon  to the Platoon, this is Defense News Weekly.   11 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:26,080 Welcome back to Defense News Weekly. I'm Andrea  Scott. We've got a full show for you this week,   12 00:01:26,080 --> 00:01:30,560 so let's dive right in. The Veterans  Administration has released a colossal   13 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:36,640 new proposal to rebuild or reconstruct huge  swaths of its hospital and care center network.   14 00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:42,120 Capitol Hill Bureau chief Leo Shane outlines  the $2 trillion infrastructure plan. 15 00:01:42,120 --> 00:01:46,480 - Leo, the Department of Veterans  Affair is asking for $2 trillion   16 00:01:47,520 --> 00:01:51,640 for infrastructure in the coming  years. Tell me about that plan. 17 00:01:51,640 --> 00:01:57,360 - Yeah, look, these are recommendations that came  from the secretary of Veterans Affairs as part of   18 00:01:57,360 --> 00:02:03,520 the asset and infrastructure review commission.  This is sort of like brack for VA base closing   19 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:07,280 ground except in this case, they're talking  about what the department's footprint will   20 00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:13,200 be across America for the next 30 years. And  what they proposed are really radical changes,   21 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:17,760 things that will affect almost every state in  the country. They're talking about closing down   22 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:24,400 17 major VA medical centers in 12 states, talking  about building 14 more in other locations, talking   23 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:28,800 about completely rebuilding 18 others on top of  that, and that's before you get into some of these   24 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:34,800 community clinics and smaller venues, hundreds of  facilities could be changed here. And as you said,   25 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:40,000 the total price tag in all this would be about  $2 trillion, just a mind going amount. But   26 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:45,600 VA officials are saying that's compared to about  1.8 trillion in what it would be just to maintain   27 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:50,800 the current facilities. So this is actually  about $90 billion in spending spread out over   28 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:55,440 30 years. But still these are numbers that,  when Congress starts to look into this plan,   29 00:02:56,080 --> 00:03:01,200 you know, they're gonna see that, they're gonna  see some pretty expensive plans here, and they're   30 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:05,200 gonna see closing facilities, moving facilities.  That's gonna be hard for a lot of them to swallow. 31 00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:11,360 - Let's focus on that gigantic $2 trillion  number, and for reference, according to the   32 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:18,560 Federal Reserve, all the outstanding student  debt in the United States is $1.73 trillion.   33 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:24,000 That's a huge, huge number. It's even  more than all the student debt combined.   34 00:03:24,640 --> 00:03:27,720 How realistic is it for the VA to get that money? 35 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:33,920 - Well, look, this is parsed out a couple of  different ways here. The VA is saying, just their   36 00:03:33,920 --> 00:03:38,880 regular spending, just what they go into over the  next 30 years, again, this isn't one year, but   37 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:44,080 it's over three decades, they're saying it would  be about 1.8 trillion just to keep maintaining the   38 00:03:44,080 --> 00:03:50,240 VA hospitals. You know, VA medical centers are a  big business. It is the largest health system in   39 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:57,040 America right now. So we're talking over 1,500  different locations. They need to get staff.   40 00:03:57,040 --> 00:04:02,960 They need to get upgrades. They need to get new  equipment. So all of this costs money. And what   41 00:04:02,960 --> 00:04:08,240 VA is saying is rather than just dump that money,  let's invest a little bit more and get upgraded   42 00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:13,120 facilities. Let's move facilities to areas where  more veterans will be able to access care, more   43 00:04:13,120 --> 00:04:18,160 veterans will have access to things like specialty  care and mental health care. But you're right,   44 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:22,640 those numbers are just so big to talk about.  There's gonna be quite a few lawmakers who say,   45 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:27,360 "We can't even have this conversation. We can't  be talking about tens of billions or trillions   46 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:32,480 of dollars when we're not sure if there's a  waste and inefficiencies within the department." 47 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:36,960 - And your reporting showed that  they want different infrastructure to   48 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:41,840 serve the veteran community of  the future. Walking into a clinic,   49 00:04:41,840 --> 00:04:44,880 walking into a hospital, what's that  different infrastructure going to look like? 50 00:04:44,880 --> 00:04:49,840 - Yeah, so some of the areas that'll have major  medical centers closed down will have them   51 00:04:49,840 --> 00:04:54,800 replaced with smaller community centers, maybe  spread in different areas of town. So you won't   52 00:04:54,800 --> 00:05:01,360 have as many options there. You might not have  full operating rooms or full suite of services,   53 00:05:01,360 --> 00:05:06,160 but you will have quicker access. Maybe instead  of having one big building in the middle of town,   54 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:10,000 you'll have have five buildings spread around  town. Maybe there'll be one big building two towns   55 00:05:10,000 --> 00:05:15,120 over, and you'll have to drive to that. VA saying  if all of these changes are implemented, about   56 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:22,240 200,000 veterans will be, 200,000 more veterans  will be within a half an hour of primary care,   57 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:27,360 and about 300,000 will be within an hour of  specialty care. So that's a pretty dramatic   58 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:31,120 improvement. The question is whether or not  that's worth the amount of money it will cost. 59 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:33,600 - Have you heard from the  veterans community or veterans   60 00:05:33,600 --> 00:05:36,000 group saying anything for it or against it? 61 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:41,040 - Well, look, these are just recommendations right  now. So the veterans community is parsing through   62 00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:45,760 it and really looking closely at what comes next.  There's gonna be an independent commission that   63 00:05:45,760 --> 00:05:51,280 goes into these details over the next year, makes  their own recommendations based off of them. And   64 00:05:51,280 --> 00:05:55,760 then both the White House and Congress will have  a chance to vote this up or down about this time   65 00:05:55,760 --> 00:06:00,160 next year. So, there's still a lot of work to be  done. A lot of those veterans groups right now are   66 00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:04,800 holding back their criticism and waiting for  those public hearings to come from the independent   67 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:09,360 commission, so they can really start to dig into  what's gonna work, what's not gonna work. But   68 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:14,320 especially for communities that are losing  facilities and losing major hospitals, they're   69 00:06:14,320 --> 00:06:18,960 already gearing up for a fight. I've heard from a  lot of folks who are in places like Buffalo, South   70 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:23,920 Dakota, slated to lose two VA medical centers.  Those folks are starting to mobilize already to   71 00:06:23,920 --> 00:06:28,880 put up a fight against losing their facilities and  trying to make a case for why they should stay. 72 00:06:28,880 --> 00:06:33,120 - And we'll see how the recommendations  change as they go up the chain.   73 00:06:33,120 --> 00:06:35,600 Leo, thank you so much. We  always appreciate having you on. 74 00:06:35,600 --> 00:06:38,640 - I appreciate it. And I'll  be tracking it all year. 75 00:06:38,640 --> 00:06:42,360 - And you can find that  coverage on militarytimes.com. 76 00:06:42,360 --> 00:06:46,880 - That's it from around the military  this week. When we come back,   77 00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:51,840 more on one of the weapons being used  in the war in Ukraine: a Turkish drone.   78 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:04,640 Welcome back. In this week's Actionable  Intelligence, we look at more of the weapons   79 00:07:04,640 --> 00:07:15,840 being deployed in the battle for Ukraine:  a Turkish drone system made by Bayraktar. 80 00:07:26,760 --> 00:07:27,760 -   81 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:32,880 Baykar's TB2 Bayraktar drone has gotten a lot  of attention in Ukraine's fight against Russia.   82 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:37,680 You may have seen video online of it  blowing up Russian tanks and anti-aircraft   83 00:07:37,680 --> 00:07:43,280 assets among other targets. Right now, I'm  joined by Tayfun Ozberk who covers Baykar,   84 00:07:43,280 --> 00:07:46,800 the Turkish drone maker. Tayfun,  welcome to Defense News Weekly. 85 00:07:47,480 --> 00:07:52,800 - Hello, Daniel. Thank you for your kind  invitation. It's a privilege for me. 86 00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:59,280 - Thank you. Baykar's TB2 Bayraktar has been  getting a lot of attention in Ukraine where it   87 00:07:59,280 --> 00:08:05,200 is said, through open source intelligence and even  report from classified sources, that it has taken   88 00:08:05,200 --> 00:08:14,400 out several Russian targets, that is anti-aircraft  weapons and even tanks. Not a lot of people had   89 00:08:14,400 --> 00:08:20,560 heard about the TB2 before this, but certainly you  have. Tell us a little bit about this aircraft and   90 00:08:21,840 --> 00:08:24,520 why it's seeing the success  as it is on the battlefield. 91 00:08:24,520 --> 00:08:32,960 - Yes, the performance of the drone was a matter  of curiosity before this war between Russia and   92 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:40,800 Ukraine. TB2 is a combat proven drone. This is  the most important feature of system was tested   93 00:08:40,800 --> 00:08:49,840 roughly four times in real conflict in Syria,  Libya, and the most recently, Karabakh. And   94 00:08:49,840 --> 00:08:56,960 this is the fourth real battle environment  for TB2. The another important aspect of TB2   95 00:08:56,960 --> 00:09:03,600 is it's very cost efficient drone. For  example, you can buy roughly 20 or 25   96 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:11,440 TB2 drones with a price of just one Reaper  drone. Another important feature is modularity,   97 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:20,320 I can say. Even if an airport would be destroyed  where you want to take off the TB2 drones, you   98 00:09:20,320 --> 00:09:26,880 can make it ready to fly from somewhere else, for  example, from a highway in just 15 or 20 minutes.   99 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:37,840 I should also mention the artificial intelligence  features of TB2. AI effects the performance of the   100 00:09:37,840 --> 00:09:45,280 drone very positively. It's powered with deep  learning algorithms, and this enhances drone's   101 00:09:45,280 --> 00:09:53,280 capabilities in every mission it attended. TB2  is also resistant to electronic warfare attacks,   102 00:09:53,280 --> 00:10:00,000 and it has anti-jamming and anti-spoofing  capabilities and capable to fly in a GPS-free   103 00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:08,680 environment for a while. Even it loses the signal  of GPS, it can continue its mission for a while. 104 00:10:08,680 --> 00:10:12,880 - And you mentioned the Reaper  drone. I've seen the TB2   105 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:17,600 on a runway, you know, in pictures. It seems  a lot smaller than I would've expected it. 106 00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:19,280 - Yes, yes. Very smaller. 107 00:10:20,040 --> 00:10:25,920 - And what about the armaments? Are all of them  armed or are some of them used for reconnaissance?   108 00:10:25,920 --> 00:10:28,680 And the ones that are armed, what kind  of armaments do they usually have? 109 00:10:28,680 --> 00:10:35,840 - Yes, we also should mention the smart munition  it carries. The MAM family smart munition is   110 00:10:35,840 --> 00:10:42,640 manufactured by the Turkey Roketsan company, helps  TB2 to hit the target with pinpoint accuracy.   111 00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:53,200 It hit even moving targets with fast speed many  times, there are so many videos on internet of the   112 00:10:55,040 --> 00:11:02,080 vehicles or main battle tanks TB2 destroyed.  It has options to engage targets from   113 00:11:02,080 --> 00:11:08,955 15 to 30 kilometers range with  different versions of MAM munitions. 114 00:11:08,955 --> 00:11:11,280 - We understand there's a TB3 on  the way. Can you tell me a little   115 00:11:11,280 --> 00:11:13,840 bit about what's on the horizon with Baykar? 116 00:11:13,840 --> 00:11:21,360 - Yes. Baykar is currently working  on an enhanced version of TB2.   117 00:11:21,360 --> 00:11:28,640 Its name is TB3. It's a shipborne  version of TB2. It has a wider wingspan   118 00:11:28,640 --> 00:11:40,000 and a stronger engine to help the drone fly from  naval assets. TB3 will be operated on Turkey's   119 00:11:40,000 --> 00:11:51,520 prospective landing helicopter dock named  TCG Anadolu, and TB3 will have holding things   120 00:11:51,520 --> 00:12:00,240 to be housed in the hangers of the ship. It will  be more portable. According to the latest reports   121 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:07,840 from the Turkish government and the Baykar  company, they're planning to make them flight   122 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:17,400 within this year. And it's integration to TCG  Anadolu will be complete by the end of 2022. 123 00:12:17,400 --> 00:12:24,720 - I also understand that Baykar is also working  on an unmanned jet fighter. Tell us about that. 124 00:12:25,640 --> 00:12:36,720 - Yes, Baykar recently released the photos of  their unmanned fighter on the production line.   125 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:45,760 Its name is MIUS. It's the prestige project  of Baykar. The company officials says that   126 00:12:45,760 --> 00:12:55,600 it's their dream project. And they began the  conceptual work of the project in 2013. It will   127 00:12:57,360 --> 00:13:08,640 have air to air fighting capability  and will fly at the speed of 0.8   128 00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:20,080 mach speed. And it will have an operational radius  about 500 nautical miles, and it have a payload of   129 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:26,080 1,500 kilograms. 130 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:30,800 - Well, Tayfun, thank you very much. There's a  lot of news coming out of the Turkish defense   131 00:13:30,800 --> 00:13:33,840 industry, and our correspondents  cover it every step of the way.   132 00:13:34,400 --> 00:13:41,600 You can follow it all on defensenews.com. And now  for Defense Dollars. Germany will buy up to 35   133 00:13:41,600 --> 00:13:47,040 of the US made F-35 fighter jet, reversing  years-long plans that saw the fifth generation   134 00:13:47,040 --> 00:13:52,320 war plane eliminated from consideration.  The planes will take over by 2030 the niche,   135 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:56,560 but crucial nuclear weapons mission from  the aging fleet of Tornado aircraft.   136 00:13:57,600 --> 00:14:02,640 That announcement came from Defense Minister  Christine Lambrecht during a joint statement   137 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:07,840 with German Air Force Chief of Staff, Lieutenant  General Ingo Gerhartz in Berlin on Monday.   138 00:14:08,960 --> 00:14:14,080 This comes after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz  announced that the country will exceed spending   139 00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:18,880 required by NATO. The US State Department  approved the sale of up to eight Sikorsky   140 00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:24,560 MH-60 Romeo multi-mission helicopters. And that  deal would be to Spain and would be potentially   141 00:14:24,560 --> 00:14:31,200 worth $950 million. The sale would also include  a range of weapons and systems including Hellfire   142 00:14:31,200 --> 00:14:36,960 air-to-surface missiles, and also systems to  enable surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and   143 00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:42,960 electronic warfare by the ship-based helicopters.  The State Department said in an announcement that   144 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:47,680 in addition to its reconnaissance uses it  could also be used for communications relay   145 00:14:47,680 --> 00:14:52,480 and search-and-rescue, and it will bolster the  Spanish Navy's ability to support NATO missions.   146 00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:57,840 Previously, Spain had flown the  older SH-60 Bravo Seahawk model.   147 00:14:59,120 --> 00:15:03,200 The Romeo model is living up to its name  and has its share of admirers. Customers   148 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:08,960 include the United States, Denmark, Australia,  Saudi Arabia, Greece, South Korea, and India.   149 00:15:10,160 --> 00:15:13,120 And that's it for in Industry  News this week. When we come back,   150 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:17,040 it's time to look at building and rebuilding  credit with our personal finance expert. 151 00:15:24,280 --> 00:15:25,280 -   152 00:15:25,280 --> 00:15:30,480 Welcome back. On this edition of Money Minute,  Navy Federal Credit Union personal finance   153 00:15:30,480 --> 00:15:35,600 expert Jeanette Mack talks you through  how to build or rebuild your credit. 154 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:41,760 - A positive credit history provides lasting  benefits for your personal finances. Having and   155 00:15:41,760 --> 00:15:45,520 keeping healthy credit makes it easier  and cheaper for you to borrow money.   156 00:15:45,520 --> 00:15:49,840 But you may be wondering, what happens if you  don't have very much credit or none at all.   157 00:15:49,840 --> 00:15:54,000 Good credit isn't built overnight but  you can start now on some easy habits   158 00:15:54,000 --> 00:15:59,040 that'll get you on the road to credit success. One  of the most important ways to build credit is to   159 00:15:59,040 --> 00:16:04,240 always pay your bill on time. That's gives you  credibility with lenders. So once you get a loan   160 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:09,600 or credit card, it's best to set up reminders  or use autopay to keep those payments timely.   161 00:16:09,600 --> 00:16:14,720 Also, you should keep your loan balances low.  Try not to exceed 30% of your available credit.   162 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:19,440 This shows your credit worthy. And while it's good  to have different types of credit on your report,   163 00:16:19,440 --> 00:16:23,920 be careful you don't have too many. Having  lots of credit cards or loans or frequently   164 00:16:23,920 --> 00:16:28,560 applying for credit can negatively affect your  score. Keep track of these things on your credit   165 00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:34,640 report and your score at least yearly and do help  yourself by creating a budget and sticking to it.   166 00:16:34,640 --> 00:16:39,040 You always have to know where your money's  going to successfully manage your cash flow   167 00:16:39,040 --> 00:16:43,920 and your debt. Once you become a credit card  holder or take out a loan, you are the master   168 00:16:43,920 --> 00:16:48,760 of your credit destiny. But no worries, these  tips will help you win at your financial life. 169 00:16:48,760 --> 00:16:51,840 - Thanks, Jeanette. We'll see you next week.   170 00:16:51,840 --> 00:16:54,480 In the meantime, head over to  armynavyairforceandmarinecorpstimes.com   171 00:16:54,480 --> 00:17:00,400 and defensenews.com for more coverage from  around the military and the defense industry.   172 00:17:00,960 --> 00:17:05,360 And if you're looking for stories to be delivered  to your inbox each morning, subscribe to our early   173 00:17:05,360 --> 00:17:17,840 bird brief. And don't forget to follow us on  Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, all the socials.   174 00:17:19,120 --> 00:17:23,680 Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine started,  several types of weapons have quickly come   175 00:17:23,680 --> 00:17:28,720 to define the conflict, both in the Russian  offense and the determined Ukrainian defense.   176 00:17:29,360 --> 00:17:45,840 Todd South takes us through the details of  some of those systems in this we weeks MilTech. 177 00:17:49,720 --> 00:17:52,960 - There's been a lot of talk in  recent weeks about the ability   178 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:56,320 of the Ukrainian military to slow or even  stall Russian progress for its invasion.   179 00:17:56,960 --> 00:18:00,960 Experts have shared a range of factors for why  the Russian military has run into problems.   180 00:18:00,960 --> 00:18:05,520 But when the rubber or track meets the road,  a good bit of Ukrainian success has been their   181 00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:09,680 ability to use small portable missile systems  to strike lumbering columns of Russian vehicles.   182 00:18:10,480 --> 00:18:15,600 Ukrainians have been using the following systems  according to media reports: the FGM-148 Javelin,   183 00:18:15,600 --> 00:18:20,480 a US built shoulder fire weapon that can reach  out to about 2,500 meters with a self-guided   184 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:24,400 targeting system that uses infrared homing. The  warhead is designed to punch through tank armor,   185 00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:28,480 which makes it effective against most, if not  all, of Russian vehicles rolling into Ukraine.   186 00:18:28,480 --> 00:18:32,720 They're also using the next generation light  anti-tank weapon, or NLAW. You might remember the   187 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:37,200 LAW rocket from such '80 classic action films like  Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Commando." It can hit   188 00:18:37,200 --> 00:18:41,840 targets between six and 800 meters and also has  a self-guidance and Line-of-Sight firing systems.   189 00:18:41,840 --> 00:18:47,120 But the Javelin weighs in about 50 pounds, while  the NGLAW comes in about under 30 pounds, both are   190 00:18:47,120 --> 00:18:51,600 manageable by a single soldier. The United States  delivered about 300 Javelins to the Ukrainian   191 00:18:51,600 --> 00:18:55,520 government in January, according to News Reports.  That deliver spikes significantly, when, according   192 00:18:55,520 --> 00:19:00,160 to the Washington Post, a combined US and NATO  shipment sent 17,000 anti-tank weapons, many   193 00:19:00,160 --> 00:19:04,480 of them Javelins, just this past month. That's a  lot of missiles roaming the Ukrainian countryside.   194 00:19:04,480 --> 00:19:08,800 And technically, that's almost two Javelins for  every tank that Russia has in its entire military,   195 00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:12,240 which is about 10,000 tanks. However,  most of those will likely be used on other   196 00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:16,800 armored vehicles or even unarmed vehicles carrying  infantry or other fighters. But the capacity could   197 00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:22,160 be strained. That's because experts put the cost  of a Javelin at between 80,000 to $200,000 per   198 00:19:22,160 --> 00:19:27,520 war hit. And most US manufacturers can build at  most about 6,500 a year under current conditions.   199 00:19:28,400 --> 00:19:32,960 As of this past week, Ukrainian officials claimed  that they have destroyed 335 Russian tanks   200 00:19:32,960 --> 00:19:37,040 and more than 1,100 armored vehicles, although  those numbers can't be officially verified.   201 00:19:37,040 --> 00:19:40,960 The Javelin locks into a vehicle's thermal  signature, so it's nearly a fire-and-forget   202 00:19:40,960 --> 00:19:44,960 type of weapon once the shooter sends the  round. It's also able to do a top-down attack,   203 00:19:44,960 --> 00:19:48,240 basically hitting the less armored top part  of the tank, creating more of an impact where   204 00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:53,200 it's thinly armored when it strikes. There are a  couple of homegrown Ukrainian rocket systems that   205 00:19:53,200 --> 00:19:57,280 are being used as well, although there are a bit  heavier at least one of them requires two soldiers   206 00:19:57,280 --> 00:20:02,320 complete with a tripod system to use. The  first is the lighter system, the RK-3 Corsar.   207 00:20:02,320 --> 00:20:05,520 It weighs in about under 60 pounds. It  can strike with a laser guided system   208 00:20:05,520 --> 00:20:09,520 out to about 2,500 meters and also uses a  tandem hollow charge similar to the Javelin.   209 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:14,560 Lastly is the Stugna-P, which has the farthest  range of all these rocket systems to about   210 00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:19,680 5,500 meters and also has a laser guided system,  a tandem hollow charge, and also a high explosive   211 00:20:19,680 --> 00:20:24,880 fragmentation round. The key benefit to all four  shoulder fire or tripod mounded systems is these   212 00:20:24,880 --> 00:20:29,360 are easy to operate. With minimal training, a  soldier or civilian even can quickly join the   213 00:20:29,360 --> 00:20:33,280 fight and be shown how to use these, pick  these up, point them at target and fire,   214 00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:37,040 and then get the heck out of there. That's because  from what we've seen so far, Russians don't spend   215 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:41,120 a lot of time determining a specific target.  Instead they begin launching their barrages in the   216 00:20:41,120 --> 00:20:48,160 direction of the incoming fire. And the Russian  military has a lot of firepower at its fingertips.   217 00:20:48,160 --> 00:20:53,280 US intelligence officials estimate there are about  120 battalion tactical groups inside of Ukraine,   218 00:20:53,280 --> 00:20:58,480 as of this week from the Russian military. The  BTG is a smaller version of the US Brigade Combat   219 00:20:58,480 --> 00:21:03,680 team. They use combined assets of infantry,  artillery, and air defense. Experts who track   220 00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:07,520 Russian military strength have set about three  quarters of the entire Russian military's BTG are   221 00:21:07,520 --> 00:21:14,000 in Ukraine right now. A BTG typically has three  infantry companies, a tank company with 10 tanks,   222 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:19,440 another two companies of wheeled BTRs or personnel  carriers, and a company of 10 BMP tracked infantry   223 00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:24,960 fighting vehicles. Russians use four main battle  tanks, all armed with 125-millimeter cannons.   224 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:28,960 That weapon's range hits out anywhere to between  one and five kilometers, depending on the variant.   225 00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:33,280 The tracked infantry fighting vehicles carrying  soldiers to the fight also brings with them   226 00:21:33,280 --> 00:21:38,000 a 30-millimeter cannon and some even with  100-millimeter cannon. The BMP-1 carries an   227 00:21:38,000 --> 00:21:42,880 anti-tank guided missile system. Russians have  four infantry fighting vehicle variants. The   228 00:21:42,880 --> 00:21:47,440 armored personnel carriers, or BTRs, also bring  infantry to the fight and have their own weapon   229 00:21:47,440 --> 00:21:53,200 systems, a bit smaller, but very effective. The  14.5, 12.7 and 30-millimeter cannons with their   230 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:57,520 machine guns. They can strike targets between  one kilometer or as far as four kilometers,   231 00:21:57,520 --> 00:22:02,560 again, depending on the vehicle variant. And  then there's artillery and rockets. The Russian   232 00:22:02,560 --> 00:22:07,040 military is a fire-based fighting force. They like  to lob a lot of lead down range and bring plenty   233 00:22:07,040 --> 00:22:11,440 to the fight to do exactly that. Russian forces  have four different self-propelled artillery   234 00:22:11,440 --> 00:22:17,600 pieces that all use 152-millimeter artillery  round and hit areas between 20 and 80 kilometers.   235 00:22:18,400 --> 00:22:22,880 Like the United States, Russians still have towed  artillery with variants between 120 millimeters   236 00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:28,240 and 152 millimeters. Those have ranged slightly  shorter than the 12 to 30 kilometer distance.   237 00:22:29,120 --> 00:22:33,040 The rocket systems pack a larger and farther  reaching punch. The five different systems   238 00:22:33,040 --> 00:22:37,520 in the Russian arsenal TOT rounds from the 120  millimeter up to 300 millimeter and land between   239 00:22:37,520 --> 00:22:43,120 35 kilometers clear out to 90 kilometers. This  allows forces much like the US to keep their fires   240 00:22:43,120 --> 00:22:47,600 at a safe distance, usually protected, and then  rain down a firestorm and munitions on a target.   241 00:22:48,320 --> 00:22:51,920 Keeping those systems on target is the duty  of at least three different drone variants:   242 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:58,160 the Eleron-3, the Forpost, and the Orlan-10. Those  have 16 to 18-hour loitering capabilities so they   243 00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:02,320 can just hover over a target or move around  the battlefield. Some simply gather data and   244 00:23:02,320 --> 00:23:07,360 spot targets, other are armed themselves that can  strike. Some may have seen footage of air attacks   245 00:23:07,360 --> 00:23:11,920 at close range. Those involve Russian attack  helicopters, such as the Mi-24 or 35 variant,   246 00:23:11,920 --> 00:23:17,600 and the Mi-28. Similar in capabilities to Apache  attack helicopter, they also have rockets,   247 00:23:17,600 --> 00:23:22,160 AR-missiles, air-to-ground missiles,  and a 30-millimeter cannon to boot.   248 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:26,080 It's important to remember that time and again  even less sophisticated systems such as cheap,   249 00:23:26,080 --> 00:23:30,240 expendable, and easy to use rocket propelled  grenades have thwarted the United States in less   250 00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:34,800 than well armored vehicles. Ukrainian weapons used  so far are specialized to take out ground vehicles   251 00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:37,920 in armor, which is appropriate for how they're  being employed against the Russian military.   252 00:23:38,560 --> 00:23:42,800 Some have called for delivering man portable air  defense systems or MANPADS, such as the Stinger,   253 00:23:42,800 --> 00:23:47,680 and have those sent to the Ukrainians. They are  similarly easy to use compared with more complex   254 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:52,240 weaponry, and geared to take out helicopters,  planes and drones. Most MANPADS can hit aircraft   255 00:23:52,240 --> 00:23:57,200 up to about three miles away. The United States  supplied enough MANPADs, specifically Stingers,   256 00:23:57,200 --> 00:24:00,800 to Afghan fighters in the 1980s to counter  the Soviet occupation of that country.   257 00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:06,080 In a three-year period, Afghans were able to  take out an estimated 269 Soviet aircraft, mostly   258 00:24:06,080 --> 00:24:11,440 helicopters. The Soviet Union did its own MANPAD  exports, sending shipments to Libya in the 1980s,   259 00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:15,760 some of which were then shared with terrorist  organizations. Official data estimates show that   260 00:24:15,760 --> 00:24:20,240 several thousand MANPADs are currently outside of  state control. This presents a vexing problem for   261 00:24:20,240 --> 00:24:25,840 military and civilian aircraft concerns. Following  the 2003 U.S.-led Iraq invasion as many as 4,000   262 00:24:25,840 --> 00:24:29,920 MANPADS were determined missing from the Iraqi  military stocks, according to the Arms Control   263 00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:34,480 Association 2013 report. So that's been an  overview of both the Russian and Ukrainian   264 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:38,320 weapons systems employed in this conflict and  concerns about proliferation beyond Ukraine.   265 00:24:38,880 --> 00:24:45,840 We'll continue tracking the story.  It's been Todd South of Military Times. 266 00:24:48,440 --> 00:24:53,680 - And that's all we have time for this  week. Please visit us on militarytimes.com   267 00:24:53,680 --> 00:24:59,840 and defensenews.com for more coverage. Thanks  for joining us. And we'll see you next week.