Russia can reduce the supply of arms to Armenia

Moscow / 02.08.18 / Turan: Moscow newspaper Kommersant writes that in Russia the actions of the new government of Armenia are causing more and more irritation. According to Kommersant, sources in the state structures of the Russian Federation, special irritation was caused by the arrest of the CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov. In the Kremlin, it was considered a serious blow to the image of the military bloc and did not rule out that the CSTO could be headed by a representative of another country. Moreover, the previously agreed arms deliveries to Armenia for $ 100 million turned out to be in question.

"According to top managers of the two defense enterprises of Russia, the implementation of the second package of contracts, under which Armenia was to receive a loan of $ 100 million, is now" under big question ".

Deliveries of weapons and military equipment under the first package of contracts (for their implementation, Moscow allocated in 2016 to Yerevan a loan of $ 200 million) have been completed. The second contract implied the continuation of the supply of small arms, engineering communications and transport for the transport of personnel.

The previous leadership of the Defense Ministry also wanted to acquire the second division of the Iskander-E operational-tactical complex (eight of its launchers were delivered by the Armenian military under a separate agreement in 2016), as well as Su-30SM fighters. Now these plans are suspended, writes Kommersant.

In turn, a number of Armenian media denied the statements of Defense Minister David Tonoyan that Russian armaments within the framework of 200 million loans are modern and they are not even in the arsenal of the Russian army.

However, a significant part of the weapons and ammunition is quite outdated, the Armenian users of social networks write. So the most significant new weapon systems were Soltcepk and Smerch rocket systems. The first of these is the modification of the Buratino system of the 1987 model, modified in 2001. The second one is given to Armenia with cluster missiles 9M531 (the range of flight is 90 km).

Moreover, while sold to Azerbaijan "Solntsepeks" are completely new and have great patency in mountain conditions (since they are made on the basis of the T-90 tank), and sold to Armenia - on the basis of old T-72 tanks.

The portable antiaircraft system "Igla-S" and the passive radar station "Avtobaza-M", sold to the Armenian side, were manufactured in 2000.

The remaining types of weapons are even older: antitank weapons "Contest" have been in operation since 1974 and have been modernized in 1991.

RPG-26 hand grenade launchers have not been modified since 1985.

Even more old are the V-84 tank engines supplied to Armenia and UTD-20 BMP engines. The first of them is the model of 1966, the second - in 1984.

There are no new types of weapons in the list of weapons sold to Armenia, such as the Pantsyr-S or S-300-PMU2 Favorit, anti-tank weapons of Chrysanthemum and Cornet, self-propelled artillery systems Msta-S and Vena, or M-17 and M-35 helicopters, although the list was delivered to Azerbaijan.

Russia did not sell armored vehicles to Armenia, although Azerbaijan bought 150 tanks, 94 of which are specifically designed for mountain conditions of the T-90S with a capacity of 1,000 horsepower, as well as hundreds of the latest BTR-80 and BMP-3.

Under the loan agreement, Armenia will not receive any aircraft or helicopters.

In recent years, Azerbaijan has sold two battalions of S-300PMU2 "Favorit" anti-aircraft missile systems produced in 2009, which has made not only the forward line, but the greater part of the airspace of Armenia vulnerable.

Sold in Armenia in 2010, the S-300PS system of the 1982 model is significantly inferior to those sold to Azerbaijan. Thus, the Favorit has a range more than twice that of the S-300PS, and it can accompany 6 times more targets and hit planes flying 2.5 times faster, Armenian sources write. -02D-