This slick Russian propaganda video shows a tank traveling across a field in Ukraine and firing shells at unseen targets.
Zenger News obtained the footage from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of the Russian Federation yesterday (Thursday, 5th May).
The Russian MoD said: “Combat work of tank crews of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.”
The MoD also released a series of apparently heavily doctored photos yesterday showing Russian artillery systems firing shells, which it captioned: “#DemilitariZation
“Calculations of self-propelled artillery installations ‘Malka’ hit the enemy positions.
“#Ministry of Defence #Russia #Ukraine”
‘Z’ is believed to stand for “Za pobedu” (“For victory”) and has become a pro-war symbol in Russia.
Russian troops invaded Ukraine on February 24 in what the Kremlin initially called a “special military operation” to “demilitarise and denazify” Ukraine.
The Kremlin now says the operation’s aim is to “protect Donbass”.
The 2S7M Malka is an improved variant of the 2S7 Pion – a Soviet self-propelled 203mm heavy artillery that has been in service since 1976. The Malka itself entered service in 1983.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that from 24th February to 6th May, Russia had lost 24,900 troops, 1,110 tanks, 2,686 armored fighting vehicles, 502 artillery systems, 171 multiple launch rocket systems, 83 anti-aircraft systems, 199 warplanes, 155 helicopters, 1,926 vehicles and fuel tankers, 11 vessels, 324 tactical unmanned aerial vehicles, 38 units of special equipment and 90 cruise missiles.
As the Ukraine-Russian war enters its 72nd day, Russia has claimed victories including the destruction of multiple Ukrainian positions in heavy fighting overnight saying they killed 600 Ukrainian soldiers.
The Kremlin has also gone on the defensive to deny Ukrainian claims that the troops are currently storming the last Mariupol strongholds, and insisted that the humanitarian corridors were still open. Russian President Vladimir Putin has also told Kyiv that they should persuade the troops in the area to lay down their weapons to end the fighting in the besieged city.
They have also accused the West of feeding intelligence to Ukraine to support their fight against what Russia calls a “special military operation”. The US has denied the claim, including the suggestion that they told Ukrainians how they could track down and target Russian generals for assassination by snipers. It was also suggested more recently that intelligence in Washington is what helped Ukraine sink the Russian warship Moskova.
Russia is believed to be desperate to take Mariupol before the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow which marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany.
So far some 500 civilians have been evacuated from Mariupol and some other areas of southern Ukraine in a rescue operation organized under the auspices of the UN International Red Cross. The numbers were confirmed by the Ukrainian president’s office.
