Direct proof of use
The 120 mm mortar launcher is directly documented in Ukrainian use during the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War through battlefield imagery from the Chasiv Yar sector. Reuters Connect published May 2025 images showing servicemen of the 24th Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo firing, and preparing to fire, a 120-mm mortar toward Russian troops near Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region on 27 May 2025.
The same event appeared in other wire-distributed coverage. Al Jazeera's 30 May 2025 war update carried an EPA handout caption identifying servicemen from the brigade's 2nd Rifle Battalion firing a 120 mm mortar on the outskirts of Chasiv Yar, while an Associated Press photo caption described a soldier preparing a 120 mm mortar to fire toward Russian army positions near the town.
Sources: Reuters Chasiv Yar 120-mm mortar, Reuters Chasiv Yar preparation image, Al Jazeera Day 1191, AP Chasiv Yar 120mm mortar photo
Earlier Chasiv Yar documentation
The Kyiv Independent published a January 2025 photo essay by Oleg Petrasiuk and Asami Terajima that tied additional 120 mm mortar use to the 24th Brigade's Chasiv Yar defense in 2024. Captions in the essay identify 3rd Mechanized Battalion servicemen firing a 120 mm mortar in Chasiv Yar on 20 June 2024 and a 2nd Mechanized Battalion serviceman firing a 120 mm mortar toward Russian army positions near Chasiv Yar on 21 August 2024.
The essay also explains the source context for the imagery: Petrasiuk was serving in the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade press service while the brigade held ground around Chasiv Yar. That context supports the unit and location attribution for the mortar images but does not identify a specific national model of 120 mm mortar.
Sources: Kyiv Independent Donetsk Photo Essay
Role in the conflict
The documented use places the generic 120 mm mortar launcher class in a Ukrainian heavy indirect-fire role on the eastern front. The cited captions describe mortar crews firing toward Russian troops or Russian army positions around Chasiv Yar, rather than documenting transfer history, ammunition stocks, or a named launcher model.
Because the public evidence identifies caliber, weapon class, unit, location, and direction of fire but not a model designation, this usage page treats the record as 120 mm mortar launcher use by Ukraine. Specific catalog entries such as the 2S12 Sani or 120-PM-38 should be used only where sources identify those systems directly.
Sources: Reuters Chasiv Yar 120-mm mortar, Reuters Chasiv Yar preparation image, Kyiv Independent Donetsk Photo Essay, Al Jazeera Day 1191, AP Chasiv Yar 120mm mortar photo
