The Defense Procurement Agency of Ukraine signed a contract worth over 200 million euros for the purchase of M6A2 anti-tank mines, manufactured back in 1941. This deal caused a public outcry, as it concerns not only the significant cost, but also the dubious quality of the product, which has been in circulation for almost 80 years.
The director of the information and consulting company Defense Express writes about this in his material.
The Defense Procurement Agency (DPA) has begun the process of purchasing anti-tank mines that were manufactured 80 years ago. According to defense expert Oleg Zgurets, these mines will cost over 200 million euros, and experts are questioning their technical suitability.
“The M6A2 mines we are going to buy should have been manufactured back in 1941. This information in itself is already worrying,” says Zgurets.
Under a contract with a Bulgarian intermediary company, the Defense Procurement Agency plans to purchase hundreds of thousands of M6A2 mines with fuses at a price of about 600 euros per unit. This contract was initiated after an official request from the head of the Defense Procurement Agency, Marina Bezrukova, to the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. The ministry approved the purchase, noting that these mines meet the requirements for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. But this decision raises serious questions among military experts.
“We all understand perfectly well that these mines were manufactured back in the middle of the 20th century. During this time, a lot could have changed in their condition. This can be very dangerous if the mine does not work as it should, because the reliability of old ammunition is always questionable,” Zgurets notes.
The M6A2 mine is an American development from World War II, designed to destroy tanks by means of a pressure action. However, in the 1960s, these mines were withdrawn from the US arsenal due to their low effectiveness. However, many of them were transferred to countries in Asia, South America and Africa, where they are still stored to this day.
“We have information that these mines in warehouses in third countries are simply rusting. This can be a serious problem, because you cannot be sure of the ability of these mines to work if their fuses have long been out of order or are damaged by corrosion,” says one of the experts.
Despite this, some military engineers point out that even old mines can be useful if carefully inspected.
“If these mines were handed over to us for about a dollar apiece, we would accept them, even despite their age. But there is a problem with the fuses, which may be in unsatisfactory condition due to a long storage period. Therefore, laboratory tests must be conducted before we can say whether these mines will actually be able to fulfill their task,” the engineer explains.
In turn, experts emphasize that the service life of explosives such as TNT can be up to 35-60 years, but under conditions of long-term storage and corrosion of the metal body of mines, their effectiveness can significantly decrease.
“The question of the suitability of such mines for use is not just theoretical talk. This is a serious issue for our armed forces. And we must understand that without appropriate technical tests and guarantees, we risk receiving ineffective or even dangerous ammunition,” Zgurets concludes.
