Direct proof of use
The ZPU-2 is documented in Ukrainian service during the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War through Czech-supplied MR-2 Viktor light air-defense vehicles. Janes reported that Excalibur Army's MR-2 Viktor was being supplied to Ukraine, that initial batches had been delivered in the fourth quarter of 2022, and that the Toyota Hilux-based vehicle was armed with ZPU-2 twin KPVT 14.5 mm machine guns for use against unmanned aerial systems.
Ukrainian reporting then placed the systems in operational context. Defense Express, citing Ukraine's Joint Forces Command and Lieutenant General Serhiy Naiev, reported June 2023 training with Czech-made MR-2 Viktor vehicles, said the first examples were already on combat duty in the northern operational zone, and described their main task as fighting UAVs and low-altitude aircraft. ArmyInform later described a Ukrainian Armed Forces unit equipped with MR-2 Viktor systems and identified the complex as a Toyota Land Cruiser-mounted paired 14.5 mm anti-aircraft machine-gun installation.
Sources: Janes MR-2 Viktor Supplied to Ukraine, Defense Express MR-2 Viktor Training, ArmyInform MR-2 Viktor
Delivery and fielding
The supply record combines Czech production, Czech crowdfunding, and Dutch-financed procurement. Janes reported that two initial batches totaling 10 to 20 MR-2 Viktor vehicles had been delivered during the fourth quarter of 2022, that 130 to 140 were planned, and that Czech citizen donations had paid for 15 vehicles for Ukraine through the Gift for Putin campaign.
The Netherlands separately announced on January 20, 2023 that it would supply 100 vehicles fitted with anti-aircraft guns commercially purchased in the Czech Republic. Janes connected that Dutch financing to the MR-2 Viktor program, while Militarnyi reported in February 2023 that 15 Viktor anti-aircraft guns bought with volunteer-raised funds were leaving the Czech Republic for Ukraine.
Sources: Janes MR-2 Viktor Supplied to Ukraine, Dutch Ministry Patriot and Air Defense Aid, Militarnyi 15 Viktor Guns Delivered
Battlefield role
In this conflict record, the ZPU-2 appears primarily as the weapon module of the MR-2 Viktor rather than as a towed legacy gun. The system put a modernized ZPU-2-style twin 14.5 mm mount on a pickup chassis for mobile fire groups that defended against Shahed-type attack drones, other UAVs, and low-flying aircraft. Defense Express and ArmyInform both attributed the counter-UAV role to Ukrainian official or military-linked accounts.
The same sources separate transfer, fielding, and use. Dutch Ministry reporting supports the procurement of Czech-purchased anti-aircraft-gun vehicles for Ukraine; Janes supports MR-2 Viktor deliveries and the ZPU-2 twin KPVT armament; Defense Express and ArmyInform support Ukrainian training, combat-duty status, and counter-UAV employment. The record does not establish a complete inventory of every ZPU-2-family gun in Ukrainian service.
Sources: Dutch Ministry Patriot and Air Defense Aid, Janes MR-2 Viktor Supplied to Ukraine, Defense Express MR-2 Viktor Training, ArmyInform MR-2 Viktor
