The Cold War Legend of Romania’s Tank-Melting Laser Weapon

In the shadow of the 1968 Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, a powerful story took root.

Sep 29, 2025

∙ Paid

*A Romanian physicist operates a laser system during testing at the Institute of Atomic Physics in Bucharest in 1968. (Romanian government photo/*Laser Wars archive)

Every conflict gets the legend it deserves. French-born pirate Jean Lafitte became a “battlefield hero” while fighting for the United States during the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812…

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to Laser Wars to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.