Reuters: OSCE detects Russian heavy rockets in Donbass

Reuters cited a report posted on the website of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) saying that the organization had discovered the Buratino heavy rocket system in Donbass.

The report noted that this was the first time OSCE observers had seen Buratino rockets in eastern Ukraine.

Buratino rocket system. Photo: TASS

Deputy Head of the OSCE Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, Alexander Hug, said Buratino was found at a separatist militia camp in the village of Kruglik, Lugansk province.

The Buratino rocket is equipped with a thermobaric warhead, which can destroy several city blocks with a single volley.

According to data from Jane's Information Center (IHS) and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, this system is only produced by Russia and had not been exported to Ukraine before the conflict in Donbass.

Russia's Defense Ministry did not respond to written questions from Reuters about Buratino export locations and whether they were supplied to separatist forces in eastern Ukraine.

The Buratino heavy rocket system (TOS-1) is mounted on a T-72 tank chassis, using 220mm rockets with thermobaric warheads, with a range of about 3.6km. The main mission of the Buratino is to support infantry and armor. The website Popular Mechanics calls the Buratino "hell on earth" for the target of this weapon.

Moscow has repeatedly denied that Russian troops or weapons are present in Ukraine. According to the Kremlin's official position, the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics are made up of volunteers only, and the Russian military does not supply weapons to the separatist militias.

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