Victorious news on 718th day of war: Ukrainian army deploys latest anti-drone system, National Guard targets Russian Solntsepyok

Lithuania extends sanctions against Russian citizens for another year

On February 12, the Lithuanian Seimas approved a proposal to extend national sanctions against Russian and Belarusian citizens for another year, as well as to tighten checks on the entry of Belarusians into the country. This was reported by Delfi.

Amendments to the law on restrictive measures were approved by consensus after submission. The issue will now be discussed in the Seimas' committees on national security and defense and foreign affairs.

Jonas Survila, Deputy Foreign Minister, explained that the reasons for extending the sanctions are that the circumstances and geopolitical situation have not changed at all since last year. Therefore, he said, it is important to continue to properly manage potential risks to the country's security.

"The aggression continues, civilians are being killed, civilian infrastructure is being attacked - you know this very well. Therefore, in response to the ongoing war and the fact that these actions have a dramatic impact not only on the security of Ukraine, but also on the security of Europe and us, we are presenting this draft law," Survila said.

Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully use new anti-drone system against Shahed drones  

The Ukrainian Armed Forces used a new anti-aircraft missile system to destroy a laser-guided kamikaze drone. It is believed to be the Vampire system, which was developed specifically for Ukraine.

"After repulsing another attack by Russian 'kamikaze' drones on 11 February 2024, the Ukrainian Navy's press service published a video of the combat work of its air defense units, in which we can observe something unusual. Namely, that first, our anti-aircraft gunners take the enemy Shahed drones in their sights using an unknown optoelectronic station; after that, a rocket projectile hits the Russian kamikaze drone, after which the Shahed drones crashes and falls," write Defense Express analysts. They confirm the assumption of the OSINTtechnical agency that this may be the first publicly available footage of the combat operation of Vampire missile launchers for APKWS guided missiles, which were to be delivered to Ukraine last year.

Hitting and shooting down a Russian Shahed drone with a flight weight of 240 kilograms is already a significant achievement and confirms that the Vampire for APKWS is a high-tech and at the same time relatively cheap means of countering enemy kamikaze UAVs, according to Defense Express.

Rheinmetall, which supplies ammunition to Ukraine, will double its production capacity

The German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall has started building a plant for the production of shells in Lower Saxony. The company wants to produce up to 200,000 artillery shells per year, Tagesschau reports.

The arms manufacturer plans to double or even triple its production capacity. The new facility is being built by defense contractor Rheinmetall in the town of Unterlüss between Hanover and Hamburg, where the company already has production facilities. In particular, Puma infantry fighting vehicles are manufactured there.

Rheinmetall plans to produce up to 200,000 artillery shells a year at the new plant. Even if all this ammunition were to be delivered to Ukraine - and this is not planned - it would cover only a quarter of the needs mentioned by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the German publication notes.

Ukrainian National Guard destroys Solntsepyok MLRS

The National Guard of Ukraine has destroyed a TOS-1A Solntsepyok multiple-launch rocket system (MLRS) using a drone drop. The explosion was so powerful that the drone itself burned down. This was reported by Military Courier. 

The TOS-1A Solntsepyok is a 220 mm caliber heavy flamethrower system. It is based on the T-72 tank chassis. The system uses thermobaric unguided rockets that are 3.7 m long and weigh 217 kg.

These rockets consist of a thermobaric or incendiary warhead, a fuse and a solid propellant rocket engine. The effective range of the TOS-1A is said to be approximately 6 km.

Earlier, the Military Courier wrote that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had effectively hit a Russian ammunition depot with a British AS-90