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Marcus Schuler edits BattlePolicy, a daily defense-technology brief connecting the companies and capabilities behind modern war to the contest among Europe, the US, Russia, and China.
China’s main modern tracked 155 mm self-propelled howitzer — a L/52 autoloaded gun fielded by the PLA since 2008, with no export record and no verified combat use.
Russia's new 8×8 truck-mounted 152 mm self-propelled howitzer — a cheaper, more mobile addition to the artillery park designed for rapid shoot-and-scoot in the drone-saturated battlefield.
Russia’s next-generation tracked 152 mm self-propelled howitzer—a fully automated, crew-isolated design intended to replace the 2S19 Msta-S and bring a claimed reach beyond 70 km, though still in limited, pre-mass-combat introduction.
Russia’s mainstay 152 mm tracked self-propelled howitzer — the 2S19 Msta-S, with its 2A64 ordnance, entered service in 1989 and remains the backbone of Russian divisional artillery, with the modernized 2S19M2 adding digital fire control.
The 2A65 Msta-B is a Soviet-era 152 mm towed gun-howitzer that entered service in 1987 and remains the backbone of Russian divisional artillery — now heavily committed in Ukraine, where its towed configuration leaves it acutely exposed to drone-cued counter-battery.
The K9 Thunder is South Korea's 155 mm/L52 tracked self-propelled howitzer — the most widely exported SP gun in the world and the backbone of NATO's eastern-flank tube artillery.
Sweden's fully automated 155 mm wheeled self-propelled howitzer — a crew-under-armor shoot-and-scoot system delivering precision strikes at extended ranges, fielded by Sweden, the UK, and Ukraine.
France's truck-mounted 155 mm self-propelled howitzer — a high-mobility wheeled artillery system that has redefined shoot-and-scoot with NATO-standard range and a growing presence across Ukraine’s front lines.
Germany's high-tempo tracked 155 mm self-propelled howitzer, prized for its burst rate of fire and long reach, serving across NATO and Ukraine.
The U.S. Army’s latest tracked self-propelled howitzer — a 155 mm L/39 gun on a Bradley-common chassis, built to sustain indirect fire for armored brigade combat teams.
The M777 (M777A2) is a lightweight 155 mm towed howitzer—air-transportable, titanium-built, and combat-proven from Iraq to Ukraine.
China's primary conventional attack submarine with indigenous Stirling air-independent propulsion — a quiet, multi-week-endurance boat built for regional sea denial, and the platform behind Beijing's push into the submarine export market.
China's first credible sea-based nuclear deterrent — a nuclear-powered ballistic-missile submarine carrying up to 12 JL-2 or JL-3 SLBMs, fielding six boats for near-continuous patrols.
China's second-generation nuclear attack submarine, the Type 093 Shang family, from initial torpedo-armed boats to the VLS-equipped Type 093B, forms the backbone of the PLAN's undersea force.
Russia's troubled Project 677 diesel-electric attack submarine — a mono-hull design intended to replace the Improved Kilo with Kalibr capability and planned air-independent propulsion, but plagued by decades of delays and an absent AIP system.
Russia's diesel-electric Kalibr-capable attack submarine — the "Black Hole" of the Black Sea, a widely exported SSK and the platform behind the only documented submarine-launched cruise-missile strikes in combat.
Russia's latest nuclear ballistic-missile submarine, the cornerstone of its sea-based nuclear deterrent, carrying 16 Bulava SLBMs and featuring a pump-jet propulsor for enhanced stealth.
Russia's most modern nuclear attack submarine — a multirole SSGN carrying Kalibr, Oniks, and Zircon cruise missiles in vertical silos, and the quietest Russian submarine design to date, assessed as comparable to US Seawolf/Virginia generation.
A Franco-Spanish diesel-electric attack submarine family with optional MESMA air-independent propulsion, exported to Chile, Malaysia, India, and Brazil, and the backbone of India's Kalvari and Brazil's Riachuelo classes.
Germany's pioneering fuel-cell AIP attack submarine — the ultra-quiet Type 212A, now evolving into the larger Type 212CD for North Atlantic/Arctic operations, operated by Germany, Italy and (on order) Norway.
The United States Navy’s sea-based strategic deterrent — 14 nuclear-powered ballistic-missile submarines carrying Trident II D5 SLBMs, and 4 converted
France's next-generation nuclear attack submarine — the Barracuda-class Suffren boats carry the MdCN cruise missile, F21 torpedoes, and a special-forces lock-out, replacing the Rubis-class SSNs one-for-one.
The Royal Navy’s stealthy nuclear-powered attack submarine — armed with Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk cruise missiles, sheathed in 39,000 anechoic tiles and driven by a pump-jet for silent patrols world-wide.
The US Navy’s premier nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine, blending advanced quieting, a large Tomahawk strike payload, and special-operations support; the platform at the center of the AUKUS submarine pathway.