The SVD, commonly known as the Dragunov, is a Soviet 7.62x54R semi-automatic designated marksman rifle designed to give infantry units longer-range precision fire without the weight and slower rate of a bolt-action sniper rifle. Its fixed-stock, folding-stock, modernized, and heavy-caliber variants remain visible across state forces and non-state armed groups, including documented use in Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, and the Lake Chad Basin.
A UN DPO/UNODA Lake Chad Basin weapons study lists Dragunov sniper rifles among the main manufactured small arms used by Boko Haram, while HumAngle reported a JAS/Boko Haram Lake Chad video showing a fighter demonstrating marksmanship with a Dragunov.
CAR documented eight SVD designated marksman rifles in Ukraine during 2018-2019 Donbas fieldwork, including rifles modified for sound moderators; open sniper reporting also describes Ukrainian SVDM use in Donbas, older SVD rifles with Russian snipers around the 2022 invasion, and Ukraine's GUR reporting SVD/SVCh rifles issued to North Korean troops moved toward Ukraine in 2024.
Role detailsTIME profiled a Free Syrian Army sniper in al-Qusayr using a Dragunov during the 2011 Syrian Civil War, while the Combating Terrorism Center's Qusayr battle study identifies Dragunov sniper rifles among standard weapons carried by Hezbollah infantry teams in the same campaign.
Role detailsDOD IG and DVIDS records document Dragunov/SVD-137 rifles with Afghan government forces in 2009-2012, GAO and Small Arms Survey place Dragunov rifles in ANDSF equipment and transfer records, and U.S./UK imagery and reporting document a captured Dragunov rifle and Taliban-linked Dragunov ammunition.
Role detailsSVD family designations mostly distinguish stock layout, modernization packages, caliber changes, and licensed or derivative rifles rather than a single clean production block.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| SVDS | Folding-stock airborne and mechanized variant | Small Arms Survey treats the SVDS as a folding-stock SVD variant intended for troops that needed a shorter weapon for transport and vehicle or airborne use. |
| SVDM | Modernized Russian SVD | Kalashnikov and Russian procurement reporting identify the SVDM as a modernized Dragunov-family rifle, keeping the SVD lineage in Russian service despite newer replacement programs. Sources: SVD capabilities, Russia chooses 60-year-old SVD rifle instead of the latest SVCh |
| SVDK | Heavy-caliber derivative | Small Arms Survey identifies the SVDK as a larger-caliber Dragunov-family variant chambered for 9.3x64 mm ammunition. |
| SVU | Bullpup derivative | Small Arms Survey lists the SVU as a bullpup-pattern derivative in the wider Dragunov family rather than a standard fixed-stock SVD. |
Yevgeny Dragunov's rifle was developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, with the SVD adopted into Soviet service in 1963.
Sources: Dragunov SVD Weapons Identification Sheet, SVD-63 Russian 7.62mm Russian Automatic Sniper Rifle
Small Arms Survey's identification sheet distinguishes later Dragunov-family layouts such as the folding-stock SVDS, heavy-caliber SVDK, and bullpup SVU.
Sources: Dragunov SVD Weapons Identification Sheet
Reporting and conflict analysis from the Battle of Qusayr documented Dragunov rifles with both Free Syrian Army and Hezbollah combatants.
Sources: Confessions Of A Sniper, The Battle for Qusayr
Ukraine's military intelligence reported that Russia issued SVD/SVCh sniper rifles to North Korean troops moved toward Ukraine, illustrating continued Dragunov-family use alongside newer weapons.
Sources: Po-pikhotnomu: chym Moskva ozbroila perekynuti do kordoniv z Ukrainoiu viiska KNDR?
