Artillery in war conflicts, strategic view of the Russian-Ukrainian war confrontation

Abstract

From the analysis of the concept of artillery it is intended to understand some of its definitions and purposes, which allow establishing the reason for its importance for States in the international context; This is based on a brief historical overview, useful to assimilate the evolution of artillery as a piece of warfare from its origins (approximately the 15th century) to the present. The conceptual understanding from International Relations and the Neorealist perspective, facilitates the understanding of the possession and use of artillery pieces, as an expression of the accumulation and projection of State power in the International System; situation possible to observe in the framework of the warlike confrontation between Ukraine and the Russian Federation unleashed in February 2022.

The methodology of qualitative approach and grounded theory design is used in this article together with the resource of bibliometric analysis. The findings identified between the operation and the uses of the artillery, allow equating it as a mechanism of projection of power; It´s military relevance (currently reflected in the Russian-Ukrainian war context) lies in the extension of the positional attack of firepower, carried out from safe locations with respect to the location of a combat front. In terms of relations between actors of the International System, the increase in military spending on artillery pieces exacerbates mistrust between States, to the extent that the projection of power of their adversaries increases.