Direct proof of use
Public documentation of the 9P157-2 Khrizantema-S in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War begins with 2022 reporting on Russian battlefield footage. Defence Blog reported on August 12, 2022 that Russian media had issued footage of Khrizantema-S anti-tank guided missiles being fired at Ukrainian targets in the Donetsk and Mykolaiv regions, including a 9K123 Khrizantema-S strike on a water tower in the Mykolaiv direction.
Defense Express later wrote that the system had appeared in the Russo-Ukrainian War context before June 2023, noting an August 2022 video of the system launching a missile in the Mykolaiv operational direction. The same June 2023 report stated that the Russian army had deployed 9P157-2 Khrizantema-S anti-tank guided missile systems to Ukraine, citing Army Recognition reporting on the deployment.
Sources: Defence Blog Khrizantema-S Ukraine Footage, Defense Express Khrizantema-S Ukraine Deployment, Army Recognition Khrizantema-S Ukraine Deployment
Timeline
The first dated public references found for this record cluster in July and August 2022. Defence Blog reproduced open-source posts dated July 15 and August 10, 2022 that identified rare Russian 9P157-2 Khrizantema-S firing footage, then summarized Russian media footage of Khrizantema-S missiles fired in the Donetsk and Mykolaiv regions.
On June 22, 2023, Army Recognition reported that Russian forces had deployed the 9P157-2 Khrizantema-S in Ukraine to counter Western tanks donated to Ukrainian forces. Defense Express followed on June 24, 2023 with a shorter Ukrainian defense-industry article that identified the same deployment report and framed the vehicle as a rare Russian self-propelled anti-tank system.
Sources: Defence Blog Khrizantema-S Ukraine Footage, Army Recognition Khrizantema-S Ukraine Deployment, Defense Express Khrizantema-S Ukraine Deployment
Role and battlefield context
The conflict-use record supports Russian employment of the Khrizantema-S as a mobile anti-armor missile carrier, with reported firing also directed at fixed or exposed battlefield targets. Rosoboronexport describes the Khrizantema-S as a BMP-3-based self-propelled anti-tank guided-missile system armed with 9M123-family missiles, two ready launch rails, a 15-missile ammunition load, and radar and laser-beam guidance channels.
The available public reporting does not establish a large deployment. Defense Express described the system as rare in Russian service and wrote that, as of the beginning of 2022, Russia had only about 30 systems, with 18 associated with the 2nd Taman Motor Rifle Division. WarSpotting's Russian equipment-loss search separately lists 9P157-2 combat vehicles for the 9K123-1 Khrizantema-S among documented Russian material-loss models in Ukraine, adding visual-loss documentation to the reporting trail.
Sources: Rosoboronexport Khrizantema-S, Defense Express Khrizantema-S Ukraine Deployment, WarSpotting Russian Equipment Search
