Why Guided Anti-Tank Missiles—Like Javelins—Are Vital in Ukraine’s Fight Against Russia

A retired American infantry officer received a Facebook note from an old Ukrainian friend this weekend. The message included a surreal video clip of a Ukrainian soldier strolling casually down a war-torn street, surrounded by broken and burning tanks, carrying an anti-tank missile.

The man appears to be carrying an NLAW rocket, a British anti-tank missile similar to the US Javelin. Both the US and the UK have sent thousands of anti-tank missiles to Ukraine in recent months, and numerous pictures of shattered Russian tanks have shown up on social media in recent days. Many show the distinctive damage caused by Javelins and NLAWs: the turrets of the tanks blown clear of their bodies.