With Ukraine receiving the first advanced German Leopard tank, its allies have launched the first signal to form the Great Tank Alliance, but Russia's arsenal is not without a remedy for this obstacle it faces in the field.
And coinciding with the first anniversary of the outbreak of the war, on the 24th of last February, Poland announced the delivery of Ukraine's first batch of the famous "Leopard 2" tanks, due to its capabilities, most notably comprehensive protection against improvised explosive devices, mines and missiles.
It is expected that other countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will decide their position on moving forward with sending batches of their tanks with advanced technology, led by the American tank "Abrams", which the Pentagon describes as the best in the world, and its counterpart, "Challenger", the jewel in the crown of the British land weapon.
Despite these accelerated steps that accompanied the intensification of battles on the fighting fronts in eastern Ukraine, Kiev's allies have repeatedly expressed fears that some military supplies could escalate the pace of the conflict, and turn it into an all-out war with the Russian bear.
Russian threat and threat
On more than one occasion, Moscow did not hesitate to accuse NATO of entering the direct front line in the war, warning the alliance to bear the consequences of that, but it also did not hide the ability of its military arsenal to defeat the mightiest Western weapons, whatever their development.
In a tone of defiance and boast, Russian military officials emphasized the ability of Russian anti-tank and armored missile systems to resolve the conflict with NATO tanks, in an explicit reference to the "Cornet" system.
This system consists of a laser-guided missile, semi-automatically, so that the shooter aims it at the target, and directs its crosshairs until hit, and it can be launched through a platform that is fixed on the ground or directly on the shoulder.
The missile is directed through an optical guide through the archer, who continues to direct it until it reaches its target, and has the ability to maneuver by turning in circular rings while flying towards the target until the last stage, in which it applies to the target and heads directly at it.
Confirming the effectiveness and efficacy of the system, an official in a Russian company specialized in exporting weapons and military equipment says that the "Cornet" system is capable of achieving the "shoot and forget" principle, because it guarantees a probability of hitting the target with a rate of no less than 97 and 99%.
Kornet system with 8 missiles installed on a Russian armored vehicle (Associated Press)
The following are the most prominent characteristics of the Kornet system:
Working range of about 10 km during the day and 8 km at night, as well as high protection against interference.
Day and night use from unprepared sites and in different positions: lying down, on the knee, in the trench, with the possibility of using the system.
It fires hollow twin-tipped missiles capable of penetrating armor up to 1,300 mm.
The missile head can be equipped with a high explosive charge capable of hitting the latest types of tanks from a distance of 10 kilometers.
Capable of destroying tanks, armored vehicles, self-propelled guns, low-flying aircraft and helicopters, as well as drones of various types.
It can be installed on "Tiger-M", "Typhoon-Ka", "BMD-4M" and other modern Russian armored vehicles that carry 16 missiles of this type, including 8 combat-ready missiles.
If installed on a combat vehicle, 4 systems can be directed at two targets simultaneously.
The armored personnel carrier needs only 8 seconds to convert the system from marching mode to combat mode.
Cornet.. in Palestine, Lebanon and Syria
The Kornet system became famous in Lebanon, Palestine and Syria, but the star of the system first shone in the July 2006 war, during the war between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah.
Hezbollah's use of the Cornet contributed to inflicting heavy losses on the Israeli army, and what the party called at the time the "Merkava tank massacre" and refuting the "myth of the indomitable Israeli tank."
In Gaza, the Kornet contributed to putting pressure on the occupation forces, which are conducting military patrols on the borders of the Strip, and causing huge losses among its forces and settlers.
Israel considers the Kornet missile very dangerous because it is anti-armor and fortification, and carries a high-explosive warhead and destructive penetrating ability.
In 2011, Israeli military industries invented a defense system called the "wind coat", which is a military technology that tanks are equipped with to intercept anti-tank missiles.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic (left) inspects the Kornet system with leaders of his country's army (Associated Press - archive)
Cornet's competing systems
Although the Kornet is considered, according to the testimony of military experts, to be the most powerful anti-tank guided missile, other systems that are no less effective than the Kornet have also proven their accuracy, most notably the American "Javelin" (FGM-148 Javelin), which entered service in 2017 and replaced the "Dragon" system.
The "Javelin" anti-tank missile is considered one of the most expensive and advanced defense systems, which is why it is called the "tank hunter", and it can be carried on the shoulder and is one of the most accurate and most effective weapons in the US Army.
This missile works in infrared, with great capabilities to enlarge the scope of vision before launching towards the target, and when launched, it rises about 160 meters until it hits the armored vehicle or tank from above.
The missile has a range of 2.5 kilometers and a weight of 23 kilometres. It is capable of penetrating armored objects with a thickness of 800 millimeters. Given the development of modern tank armor, the missile targets the upper part of the tank to damage it.
The US Army also boasts of another system no less important than the Javelin, which is the "TAW 2", which began to be used in 1983, and although it is more than 40 years old, it is still in great demand, according to military specialists.
In the rest of the world, other anti-tank systems have proven their effectiveness as well, including the Turkish "UMTAS", the French "MMB", the Chinese "HG-12", as well as the Belarusian "Shershin", and the "Milan ER", which is jointly manufactured by all from France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom.