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US to send Ukraine three remote anti-personnel mine-laying systems, NYT

US to send Ukraine three remote anti-personnel mine-laying systems, NYT Photo: Volcano mining system (flickr.com)

Ukraine will receive three different types of remote anti-personnel mine-laying systems, included in the latest US aid package, The New York Times reports

These systems include 155mm artillery shells called the Area Denial Artillery Munition, portable systems for deploying mixed minefields, the Modular Pack Mine System, and the Volcano mining system.

The 155mm M692 and M731 artillery shells from the ADAM remote mining system are equipped with M67 long-duration and M72 short-duration anti-personnel mines. Each shell contains 36 mines, which only differ in the duration of self-destruction - 48 hours for the M67 and 4 hours for the M72.

According to the reports, one ADAM shell scatters mines up to 600 meters from the aiming point. Upon hitting the ground, the M67 and M72 mines release seven wire "triggers." Contact with these triggers causes the detonation charge to activate. The effective radius for inflicting military casualties is 7 meters.

If the mine does not detonate, it becomes inactive no later than 14 days after the battery powering its detonator is discharged.

Meanwhile, the portable M131 MOPMS system is a module loaded with 17 M78 anti-tank mines and 4 M77 anti-personnel fragmentation mines, which also have self-destruction mechanisms.

In addition, Ukrainian troops will receive the US Volcano remote mining system. This system uses pre-packaged containers with anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, which are scattered over a large area after being fired from the containers.

Volcano can be deployed on both ground and aerial platforms, such as helicopters.

US military aid to Ukraine

According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the United States will provide Ukraine with several military aid packages between October and December, with a total value from $500 million to $750 million.

In particular, yesterday, the US announced another military aid package for Ukraine worth $725 million.