Thread by @UAWeapons

🧵:#Ukraine: Video appeared today from pro-Russian/DNR forces of the claimed remains of a Ukrainian attack near the #Novoazovsk border crossing, including a destroyed BTR-70M (Which the Ukrainian Forces don't use), but we will focus on a single rifle.

Weirdly, it seems the cheap Chinese handguard (atypical for modern UA military guns) is untouched by the fire, which was severe enough to gut the BTR & badly burn the body (blurred).

Hence, we can determine that it is likely that the AK was placed in the BTR just before filming.

Even more curiously, the rifle is chambered in 7.62x39 yet has an AKS-74 style folding stock (and latch), plus a barrel nut not a slant brake.

This is a key tell of the Ukrainian Mayak factory AK conversions; the MKM-072Sb civilian rifle, or the AKMS-SB military rifle.

These have an AKS-74 style folder conversion with a slight difference in button location to fit the AKM trunnion. An МКМ-072Сб is top of the pic here.

Some MKM-072Sb were used by semi-irregular forces, such as the Right Sector, back in '14 (See images) during the early stages of the war, before UA forces managed to reorganise. Some were also customised with aftermarket parts.

(See the distinctive button location in Pic1.)

However, we have not observed these rifles in service with any branch of UA SOF in recent times.

Hence, the available evidence indicates that this particular gun is likely to have been captured years ago & was used as a prop by for this attempted false flag.

Details matter.

cc @EliotHiggins @Jake_Hanrahan @AbraxasSpa @JimmySecUK @APHClarkson @Liveuamap @AricToler @Er_Woods @RALee85 @N_Waters89