The Armed Forces of Ukraine use American-made М224 lightweight mortars in combat.

The M224 60mm lightweight mortar is a smooth bore, muzzle-loading weapon with a large angle of shelling used for immense support of ground troops.

It was widely used by the United States in the war in Afghanistan.

The mortar consists of a bipod and a base plate, which is equipped with screw mechanisms for lifting and transporting. It is usually used at the company level in infantry.

Recently, soldiers of the 36th Separate Marine Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine released a video with the combat work of such a mortar.

Ukraine probably received mortars as part of the American military assistance.

Watervliet Arsenal (Watervliet, New York) began working on the М224 mortar in 1970 and development was accomplished in 1973.

Only in 1978 the M224 60mm Lightweight Company Mortar System was adopted.

The M224 LWCMS (Lightweight Company Mortar System) replaced the older (World War II-era) M2 and M19 60mm mortars.

In 2011, an improved version of the M224A1 was adopted.

Although the M224 was designed for firing all types of old ammunition, its main ammunition belongs to a new type with a greater range of about 3,500 meters.

The M224 projectiles have three types of fuses: The Multioption Fuze (M734), the Point-Detonating Fuze (M525) and a Timer fuze. The M734 is used for the M720 HE round.