A senior Ukrainian military officer has lamented that in the country’s ongoing war with Russia, France has provided limited front-line armored units with AMX-10RC wheeled tank protection deemed insufficient for front-line operations and resulting in unnecessary deaths . Agence France-Presse quoted an unnamed Ukrainian military officer with the call sign “Spartanets” as saying when talking about the function of the vehicle: “Unfortunately, there have been deaths in the vehicle. A shell exploded near the vehicle. Fragments pierced the armor and the ammunition pack exploded.” His statement suggested that the vehicle could be penetrated without taking a direct hit, which would be particularly restrictive for operations in areas of high-intensity conflict . “The guns are good and the observation gear is good, but unfortunately the armor is so thin that it’s impractical to use them on the front lines,” the officer added, warning against “just sending the vehicles out and letting them get destroyed, I think This is impractical and unnecessary, as it is primarily a risk to the crew.” In addition to poor armor protection, French vehicles also suffered from frequent breakdowns.
France was one of several European countries whose armament capabilities were heavily criticized upon their arrival in Ukraine, with German and especially Italian weapons seen as substandard. For example, the Ukrainian late 2022 report described the Italian Mod63 120mm mortars as follows: “They are much worse than their Soviet counterparts of WWII… Today we can hardly fire two rounds per minute with a flight range not exceeding 3 shells.” 4 kilometers, less than half of what we expected. In April 2023, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense found that none of the 20 recently delivered Italian-produced M109 self-propelled howitzers could be used. The most powerful Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled gun in the world is showing clear signs of “wear and tear” after only one month in service.
The quality of weapons in several European countries leaves a lot to be desired, especially when compared to the generally satisfactory equipment provided by the US, with Ukrainian sources giving highly positive reviews of assets such as the M777 howitzer. A notable exception is the American M2 Bradley tank, very similar to the French AMX-10RC, which has very limited survivability due to its limited armor – although its main role is as a personnel carrier rather than a wheeled tank, which makes it important Not so high question. Since the end of the Cold War, the ranking of the European defense industry has fallen sharply. More competitive NATO-compatible products such as South Korea’s K9 artillery and K2 tanks, Israel’s David sling air defense system, and the US F-35 fighter jet have rapidly expanded their market share on the African continent. .