Britain becomes first country to supply long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine
Europe, News May 13, 2023 3 Comments on Britain becomes first country to supply long-range cruise missiles to UkraineBritain delivered multiple units of Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine becoming the first country to supply long-range cruise missiles to Kyiv. The Storm Shadow missiles have a range of 250 kilometers.
The U.S.-supplied HIMARS missiles have a strike range of 80 kilometers, with recently received Storm Shadow cruise missiles, Ukrainian forces can hit far-away Russian targets with higher accuracy.
The delivery of the Storm Shadow missiles was announced by British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace during his speech at the House of Commons. Wallace said that the missiles would “allow Ukraine to push back Russian forces based on Ukrainian sovereign territory” and give Ukraine the “best chance” to themselves.
Ukraine has been asking for long-range cruise missiles from its Western allies since the Russian invasion began. So far, all the weapons and support provided by the U.S. and European allies have been limited to short-range strikes retraining Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities due to the fears of escalation.
Earlier this year, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov ensured Kyiv does not want to acquire long-range missiles to attack targets within Russia. “Ukraine is ready to provide any guarantees that your weapons will not be involved in attacks on Russian territory,” he said during an EU meeting.
Ukraine has been preparing for an anticipated spring counteroffensive against Russia’s recent advancements. Ukrainian troops had been receiving training as well as equipment all winter from their Western counterparts to execute the counteroffensive effectively. As Britain became the first country to supply Ukraine with long-range missiles, Wallace highlighted that “Russia must recognize that its actions alone have led to such systems being provided.”
Although Russian forces have been frequently using long-range cruise missiles on Ukrainian targets, Moscow had warned the Western allies to from providing Ukraine with long-range missiles. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow would take an “appropriate” military response to any British-supplied Storm Shadow weapons used by Ukrainian forces.
Storm Shadow
Storm Shadow/SCALP is a French-U.K. joint venture built by European missile-maker MBDA. The missile is called SCALP-EG in France. The European defense manufacturer claims that the Storm Shadow missile is a long-range “deep strike weapon” capable of “being operated day and night in all weathers.”
Its advanced navigation system using INS (inertial navigation system), GPS, and terrain referencing allows for highly precise strikes. The conventionally armed missile is designed for pre-planned attacks on high value stationary targets like bunkers and infrastructure.
The missile has been integrated into several aircraft, including the Eurofighter Typhoon, Rafale, Mirage 2000, and Tornado, and is currently in use by the UK, France, Italy and other countries. The British variant of the Storm Shadow missiles can be fired from an aircraft while French variants can be launched from ships and submarines. The missiles were used by the British and French air forces in Gulf, Iraq, and Libya.
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[…] mostly upon the U.S.-supplied HIMARS missiles have a strike range of 80 kilometers, with recently received Storm Shadow cruise missiles, Ukrainian forces can hit far-away Russian targets up to 200 kilometers, with higher […]
[…] delivered multiple units of Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine this month, becoming the first country to supply long-range cruise missiles to Kyiv. The Storm […]
[…] Shoigu said, “According to our data, the leadership of the Ukrainian armed forces is planning to deliver strikes on the territory of the Russian Federation, including Crimea, with HIMARS [rockets] and Storm Shadow missiles.” […]