Ollie Cooper, Live News Reporter
This week, reports emerged suggesting that Joe Biden is considering sending in long-range ballistic missiles if Washington's latest round of military aid to Ukraine is approved.
Late last year, the United States began supplying Army tactical missile systems known as ATACMS to Ukraine, but so far it has only supplied older intermediate-range types.
ATACMS made headlines when it appeared in the last weapons package destined for Ukraine, given the general reluctance of Western countries to provide Kiev with weapons that could penetrate Russian territory. . The inclusion of new models that can travel farther could garner similar interest internationally.
Sunil Nair, who works in Jane's research, development and analysis department, told Sky News that the new version means Ukraine can hit targets more than three times further away than before.
ATACMS missiles can be launched from the HIMARS and MLRS M270 platforms owned and operated by Ukraine.
“At the beginning of the war, when these launchers were supplied to Ukraine, the ammunition supply was limited to GMLRS rounds with a range of only 70 km,” Nile explained.
At that stage, these missiles were used to attack Russian targets close to the Ukrainian defense lines in order to stop the advance.
Short-range missiles were therefore perfect for the purpose, Nehru said, and satisfied Western powers that feared retaliation from Russia.
“These are tactical targets, and the limited range of the GMRLS meant that Ukrainian military commanders could focus on more strategic targets such as critical infrastructure, logistics supply headquarters, and manufacturing facilities, rather than closer tactical targets such as ammunition or fuel dumps. “We were unable to hit the target,” he said. I would add.
However, as the war has moved more into a war of attrition, “Ukraine now needs to force Russia to reconsider its strategy at this stage of the war and attack strategic targets in order to gain a strategic advantage.”
If the Biden administration manages to pass a Ukraine aid bill, which will likely prove difficult, it could include long-range munitions to reflect this new battlefield reality.
The new ATACMS missile can hit targets up to 300 kilometers away when launched from M270 and HIMARS launchers, more than three times as far as GMLRS rounds, Nile said.
This would allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russian-occupied territory.
