Japan’s crucial contribution: Advanced mine-clearing vehicles for Ukraine
Japan has not decided to provide Ukraine with weapons, but it does ensure other very important means such as medicines, communication systems, and mine-clearing equipment in the form of Nikken BM307-V16 vehicles. We present the performance of these heavy vehicles delivered to Ukraine by Japan.
Japan, despite the enormous distance separating it from Ukraine, has been quite actively supporting Kyiv since the beginning of the Russian invasion. This may be related to the fact that formally Japan is still at war with Russia, which has occupied the Kuril Islands since the end of World War II, as a peace treaty has not been concluded between the two countries.
However, due to restrictions on arms exports, Japanese aid to Ukraine so far has been limited primarily to protective equipment such as bulletproof vests, helmets, and small drones.
The second significant donation from Tokyo was a mix of 100 Toyota High Mobility Vehicles, Mitsubishi Type 73 Light Vehicles, and Morooka tracked carriers. Now, six Nikken BM307-V16 mine-clearing vehicles are joining this group, with a total of 22 expected to be delivered.
Nikken BM307-V16 - Hitachi ZX160 excavator for special tasks
The Nikken BM307-V16 system is specialised mine-clearing equipment based on the Hitachi ZX160 excavator, developed due to the need for necessary equipment to assist in demining Cambodia.
The Japanese company Nikken simply utilises Hitachi ZX160 excavators weighing around 17 tonnes as a base for modifications, including armouring the operator's cabin by adding armoured steel plates and bulletproof glass. This increases the weight to 19 tonnes, but with a mine roller mounted on the boom, it becomes easy-to-use and maintain equipment that any excavator operator can handle.
The Japanese boast that the machine can withstand an explosion of 10 kilograms of TNT. This is more than contained in the extremely popular TM62 anti-tank mine in Ukraine, which is capable of seriously damaging or eliminating tanks. For this reason, the Japanese delivery of mine-clearing equipment is a very significant help to Ukraine, whose vast areas in front-line regions are heavily mined.
