During his meeting with the president, Yuri Borisov also noted that the new State Armament Program will be ready by mid-2023 and that the government has already increased the advance payments to 100% for the purchase of the electronic component base. Under the state defense order (SDO), the right to conclude a contract with a single supplier at estimated prices not exceeding the average SDO and without registration with the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS).
“Unconventional weapons or weapons based on new physical principles is a very conditional term. Now it combines the widest range – from complex laser and infrasound systems to simple non-lethal weapons such as stun guns, military expert Sergei Belousov told socialbites.ca. – Let’s say electronic warfare equipment appeared relatively recently, and their purpose was incomprehensible to many, and now there are special electronic warfare units in the structure of the RF Armed Forces. And the range of military equipment is impressive, the most famous are the Leer, Infauna, Krasuha and other complexes.
Units using weapons based on new physical principles do not yet exist, but the Peresvet laser complex, which Vladimir Putin spoke about in 2018, is already on alert. This complex is designed to perform air defense and missile defense tasks. The properties of “Peresvet” are classified, it is only known to “blind” air objects, including drones, with laser action. In 2020, the complex was tested in Syria.
“It belongs to the broader class of so-called directed energy weapons, which generally includes laser weapons, microwave emitters and even directed sound generators,” political scientist and military expert Alexander Zimovsky told socialbites.ca.
The list of unconventional weapons that Borisov mentions may include a number of developments. Especially electromagnetic weapons. Tests of such weapons began in the USSR.
“In the 1950s, its creation was proposed by Academician Andrei Sakharov. There have also been developments in the Radio Instrumentation Research Institute and the Physico-Technical Institute, which are now part of the Almaz-Antey concern. Ioffe, where strong microwave radiation from the ground to air targets was studied. The indigenous Ranets-E complex, first introduced in 2001 at an arms show in Malaysia, has become the real embodiment of electromagnetic weapons capable of hitting the electronics of ground targets, aircraft and guided missiles,” said the official.
The specialist noted that this complex is able to hit electronics up to 12-14 kilometers. Therefore, the possibility of using “Kantsa-E” is limited to a relatively short range. “Work is now underway to increase the range of combat use,” says Belousov.
Another promising Russian electromagnetic weapon is the Alabuga complex. Its tactical and technical characteristics have not been disclosed. The complex is produced by Concern Radioelectronic Technologies JSC (KRET), part of Rostec Corporation.
In 2018, Deputy Director General of KRET Vladimir Mikheev told the RIA Novosti agency that the Alabuga is not a specific weapon: under this code, a number of scientific studies were completed in 2011-2012, during which they determined the main directions for development. one of the electronic weapons of the future. One of these areas in particular is the placement of an electromagnetic emitter on a rocket as a means of delivery. The charge is triggered at an altitude of 200-300 meters and operates within a radius of 3.5-4 kilometers, where the enemy lacks not only communications, but also guidance and control.
“The element base of any modern radar system is very sensitive to energy overloads, and a high-intensity electromagnetic flux can burn semiconductors and render equipment unusable. This weapon does not kill, but burns all electronics from enemy equipment ”
– Explained to socialbites.ca the principle of operation of electromagnetic weapons, a military specialist in radio electronics, reserve colonel Mikhail Lavrenchuk.