Thousands Of Ukrainian Snipers: NYT Showed Russians Being ‘Picked Off’ From 1,600 Meter-Distance

Snipers are divided into two main categories.

The number of snipers in Ukraine’s military is not publicly known but instructors estimate there are a few thousand, separated into two main categories. The New York Times journalists write about this in the material from the frontline.

The majority are known as marksmen, capable of shooting people at around 270 meters. They are often in the trenches, supporting their comrades.

The second category are the scout snipers. These are the few infantrymen who can shoot accurately from 1,600 meters away and beyond, able to read the wind, temperature and barometric pressure.

But pulling the trigger comes at a cost, especially in the age of drones and thermal sights.

The dust, smoke and sometimes the flash can be seen easily. That means that not just any Russian soldier who appears in the cross hairs is a good candidate for a kill.

The potential reward has to outweigh the risk. So the likelihood of taking a shot increases if that soldier is a “priority target” like a machine-gunner, an officer or an anti-tank guided missile crew member. Or more important: Russian snipers.

The bullets, specific to lethal long-range shooting, and their casings are often assembled by the snipers themselves to ensure they are weighed perfectly for the task.

If Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been defined as a grueling artillery war bolstered by tanks, drones and cruise missiles, then the role of the sniper, unseen and lethal, occupies an often-overlooked part of the battlefield, stated in the material.

In military circles snipers are called a “force multiplier,” meaning they can have an outsized impact on the battlefield.

And unlike Western troops dealing with the moral complexity of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, where insurgents blended in seamlessly with local populations, Ukrainian snipers, defending their country from invasion, see a clear imperative for pulling the trigger.