Direct proof of use
Terrogence reported on January 16, 2026 that both sides in the war in Ukraine had employed TM-72 anti-tank mines in limited numbers. The report identified the TM-72 as a Soviet-era anti-tank mine associated with standard magnetic-influence fuzes and described it as rarer on the battlefield than PTM-3 mines and improvised magnetic-initiation devices.
Ukrinform reported three days later that Vladyslav Voloshyn, spokesperson for Ukraine's Southern Defense Forces, said Russian engineer units had received TM-72 mines for mining roads, streets, and courtyards around Huliaipole. The same report said the mining was being carried out manually and remotely with drones.
Sources: Terrogence TM-72 Ukraine Report, Ukrinform Huliaipole Mining Report
Timeline
The clearest public sequence is concentrated in January 2026. Terrogence first summarized documented battlefield use of TM-72 mines by both sides in Ukraine, then Ukrinform published a conflict-specific report from the Huliaipole axis describing Russian engineer-unit use for route and urban-area mining.
The published evidence does not support a precise first-use date for TM-72 mines in the conflict. It supports limited battlefield employment by both sides and a dated Russian use episode around Huliaipole on January 19, 2026.
Sources: Terrogence TM-72 Ukraine Report, Ukrinform Huliaipole Mining Report
Battlefield role
In the documented Ukraine cases, the TM-72 appears as an anti-vehicle area-denial weapon rather than as a strike system. Its conflict role is tied to making roads, streets, yards, and approaches dangerous for vehicles and movement, especially where fighting and assault-group movement prevented either side from securely holding terrain.
The TM-72's technical role fits that employment. A Soviet manual archived by the Internet Archive documents the TM-72 mine and MVN-72 magnetic-influence fuze, while open technical references describe the mine as a shaped-charge anti-tank mine normally used with MVN-72 or MVN-80 magnetic-influence fuzes. Those technical sources support the mine's anti-armor and route-denial function, but the conflict-use claims here rely on Terrogence and Ukrinform.
Sources: Ukrinform Huliaipole Mining Report, Anti-Tank Mine TM-72 and Mine Fuse MVN-72, 1974, TM-72 Landmine
