Russian troops are forced to use SHOVELS during hand-to-hand combat in Ukraine

Russian troops have been forced to use shovels in hand-to-hand combat in Ukraine due to ammunition shortages as Vladimir Putin increasingly loses his grip on the war.

The Defense Ministry’s latest update on the situation in Ukraine revealed that Russian mobilized reservists said they had been ordered to attack a Ukrainian concrete strongpoint armed only with “firearms and shovels.”

The Department of Defense said the shovels like the MPL 50 were also likely the tools used for hand-to-hand combat.

A standard MPL 50 shovel has a mythological reputation in Russia for being particularly lethal.

The design of the shovel has not changed much since its first introduction in 1869. It is small and only 50 cm long.

A standard MPL 50 shovel has a mythological reputation in Russia for being particularly lethal. The design of the shovel has not changed much since its first introduction in 1869. It is small and only 50 cm long (file image)

It was used by the military as a close combat weapon, for entrenchment, as well as an ax and hammer in the Russian Empire, then the Soviet Union, and then the successor states since its invention.

Soviet Spetsnaz units reportedly trained with the MPL 50 shovel for hand-to-hand combat.

The Defense Department said the use of the shovel as a weapon “highlights the brutal and low-tech combat that has come to characterize much of the war.”

It added that one of the Russian reservists described that he was “neither physically nor psychologically” prepared for the action.

In addition, it said there is an increase in hand-to-hand combat in Ukraine.

It said this is likely because Putin continues to push for attacks by his infantry, even though they are short on ammunition.