Ukraine uses weapons from the... 19th century to protect strategic city

According to The Telegraph on March 17, the Ukrainian army is using Maxim machine guns from the Victorian era to protect the city of Bakhmut, Donbas region, in the East of the country.

Despite receiving tens of billions of dollars in military aid from the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Ukraine appears to be facing a shortage of weapons and ammunition.

A Ukrainian soldier told The Telegraph: "I have seen the Maxim machine gun many times. Although it is an old weapon, its power is still formidable. The thing to note is that it needs to be watered down (to make it work properly)."

Ukraine dùng vũ khí từ... thế kỷ 19 để bảo vệ thành phố chiến lược - Ảnh 1.

M1910 variant of the Maxim machine gun. Photo: Wikipedia

The Maxim machine gun was invented by Hiram Stevens Maxim in 1884. It was the world's first automatic machine gun, capable of firing 600 rounds per minute. Surrounding the barrel was a water tank to help reduce heat during use. The gun weighed about 30 kg (excluding the water tank and ammunition) and required 4 people to operate.

The Maxim was used by British forces in Africa and by Russian forces (during the war of 1904–1905). It was considered obsolete by World War I and British forces switched to the lighter Vickers machine gun.

The Telegraph reported that the Ukrainian army has been using Maxim machine guns in Donbas since last year. In July 2022, a Ukrainian serviceman near Severodonetsk complained to Radio France Internationale (RFI): "The Russians have artillery, armored vehicles and their forces are 5-6 times larger than ours. We have only had machine guns and RPGs since 1986, Degtyarov machine guns since 1943 and Maxim machine guns since 1933."

Statistics show that the US has sent more than $37 billion worth of weapons and ammunition to Ukraine since Russia launched a special military operation in February last year.

Meanwhile, Bakhmut is an important logistics hub for the Ukrainian military. Control of the city would prevent Russian forces from advancing toward the cities of Kramatorsk and Slavyansk.

Pham Nghia

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