The United States is considering supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles to support the country’s ongoing war with Russia. According to defense specialist Peter Wijninga of the Center for Strategic Studies in The Hague, this will significantly increase Ukraine’s strength.
It would concern missiles with a range of 150 kilometers, Wijninga knows. “Actually they are adapted aerial bombs, which we also use for our aviation,” he says. ‘The so-called small diameter bomb, which has a small explosive charge but can hit the target very accurately. It can also be attached to a missile and launched from a HIMARS, for example.’
When the missile is launched into the air, it unfolds its wings and uses a laser or GPS to set a course towards its target. “And with a range of 150 kilometers, Ukraine can strike troops and other targets far behind the front.”
Military targets
It remains to be seen exactly what targets the Ukrainians can hit. Wijninga: ‘Some of the projectiles – cruise missiles and drones – that the Russians have launched against Ukraine in recent weeks were launched from planes flying over the Caspian Sea. It’s way beyond the range of these missiles. But some of the Iranian drones are launched from Crimea.”
According to Wijninga, these are possible targets. “You could maybe fight those launch sites well with these bombs.”
Zelensky
The support of the Americans could very well be linked to the statements of Zelensky, who today warned of new Russian attacks, which could focus on the electricity grid. Although Wijninga himself thinks this is a coincidence. “However, I think this is a response to the long-standing Ukrainian demand for long-range weapons and the fact that they have suffered so much from attacks with a variety of shells on local utilities in recent weeks. I think this is an answer to that.’
Source: BNR
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