parade – Silah Report

Beretta and Sako Presence at Turkmenistan Independence Day Parade

November 28, 2017 by Miles

At this year’s 26th anniversary of the Independence of Turkmenistan, Beretta and Beretta owned Sako came out in large numbers among the small arms on parade. Of course, the Beretta 5.56x45mm NATO ARX160 took center stage among both the line troops and special operations component, with the SF component also being armed with IWI 5.56x45mm NATO Tavor TARs.

21st Century Asian Arms Race had this to say about the current rearming of the small Central Asian state–

Turkmenistan is often lampooned for its bizarre civic culture that combines national symbols with its leader’s personality cult. But judging by the recent military parade in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan’s armed strength is for the sole purpose of territorial defense. Unlike North Korea, Turkmenistan doesn’t pose a threat to global peace. It’s also trying to crawl out of an economic mess caused by its reliance on energy exports.

Neither does Ashgabat appear to have regional ambitions. On the contrary, it faces a grave threat from its border with Afghanistan where militants tied to either the Taliban or ISIS are active. In the greater scheme of things, Turkmenistan’s imperative is balancing its aspirations with the looming strength of China, India, Iran, Russia and Turkey.

Yet even if it’s overshadowed by larger countries in its neighborhood, when it comes to mass calisthenics, very impressive rifle drills, and costumed Turkmen archers trotting on horseback, Turkmenistan makes sure it surpasses its neighbors in pageantry.

Along with the ARX160s, there were some mounted with Beretta’s accompanying 40x46mm low-velocity GLX-160 UBGL.

And a designated Marksmans variant.

It appears that Turkmenistan has also purchased the IWI Negev light machine gun as well.

But the other significant update was with the precision rifles, that of Sako TRG M10s. These are probably chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO but could be in .338 Lapua Magnum. They were shown in a tan finish.

M1 Garands in Jordanian National Parade

October 2, 2017April 28, 2017 by Miles

Although not recent (Summer 2016), M1 Garands were plentiful at a parade put on by the Royal Jordanian Armed Forces in honor of King Abdullah II. Among numerous small arms used in the ceremony were M1 Garands (among a contingent of SMLEs) in use by both marchers and cavalry. Obviously, these rifles have been downgraded to a ceremonial status in recent times but they are indicative of an era in which the Jordanians actually used M1s as frontline rifles. How they got there could either be through a Foreign Military Sales purchase from the United States, or it could have been surplus Greek M1s as well. Notice that most of the marchers have their M1s mounted with their bayonets as well.

This image is from Getty Images, showing Jordanian troops armed with M1s in previous years.

Kazakh Armed Forces Preparing for a Military Parade

October 2, 2017April 22, 2017 by Hrachya H

Various branches of Kazakh Armed Forces are preparing for the military parade which will be held on May 9, 2017. The parade is dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the establishment of Kazakh Armed Forces. Although there was no new firearm spotted (yet), it is still interesting to take a look at some of them in the hands of Kazakh military personnel.

In the above picture, the special forces units carry Beretta ARX 160 rifles chambered in 7.62x39mm, which also feeds from AKM pattern magazines. They also have EOTech 512 series reflex sights and GLX160 grenade launchers mounted on the rifles.

Kazakhstan Army Parade1.jpg — On this picture, you can see the soldiers (possibly also special forces) with accessorized AK-74 rifles.

Kazakhstan Army Parade 2.jpg — Female soldiers with AKS-74U also known as “Krinkov” rifles.

Kazakhstan Army Parade 3.jpg — As in many post-Soviet countries, SKS rifles are used for the ceremonial roles in the parades and other events.

Kazakhstan Army Parade 4.jpg — Military police personnel armed with pump-action shotguns.

Other than mentioned firearms, the rest (majority) of the soldiers taking part in the parade are equipped with AK-74 and AK-74M rifles.

Interesting to note how the weapons from the ’70s are still capable and are the main weapons of many armies. Also, newer weapon systems find their way into the arsenals blending with existing ones. In that sense, it was a wise choice made by Beretta to not only chamber their ARX160 rifle in 7.62x39mm caliber, but also design it to take AK magazines. As you can see that configuration allows countries like Kazakistan to adopt modern rifles without any trouble concerning logistics, compatibility and interchangeability.

If anything small arms related appears during the actual parade, we’ll post about it here on Silah Report.