The Biden administration is “open” to providing Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles, giving its F-16 fighters greater combat power as Kyiv seeks to gain further momentum in its fight against Russia.
Politico wrote about this on August 15.
The White House’s willingness to provide Ukraine with Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) comes as Kyiv’s surprisingly successful ground operation deep inside Russia has entered its second week, embarrassing Putin and prompting him to redirect troops from the battlefield to Ukraine.
A final decision on whether to send the missile has not yet been made, but the administration is working on the intricate details, according to a Biden administration official. Those issues include reviewing the transfer of sensitive technology and ensuring that Ukrainian aircraft can launch a 2,400-pound missile that carries a 1,000-pound warhead.
The official, along with two other people familiar with the internal discussions, were granted anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.
The Pentagon declined to comment on whether it had approved the transfer of the missile.
We are looking at a number of options to meet Ukraine’s security assistance needs, but we don’t have any information to share,” Pentagon spokesman Jeff Jurgensen said.
The debate over JASSM and the Biden administration’s willingness to consider transferring it make the missile the latest in a long line of sophisticated weapons once considered off-limits to Ukraine. Biden ‘open’ to sending long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine
The Biden administration is “open” to providing Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles, giving its F-16 fighters greater combat power as Kyiv seeks to gain further momentum in its fight against Russia.
The White House’s willingness to provide Ukraine with Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) comes as Kyiv’s surprisingly successful ground operation deep inside Russia is now in its second week, unnerving Vladimir Putin and prompting him to redirect troops away from the battlefield in Ukraine.
A final decision on whether to send the missile has not yet been made, but the administration is working on the intricate details, according to a Biden administration official. Those issues include reviewing the transfer of sensitive technology and ensuring that Ukrainian aircraft can launch a 2,400-pound missile that carries a 1,000-pound warhead.
The official, along with two other people familiar with the internal discussions, were granted anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.
The Pentagon declined to comment on whether it had approved the transfer of the missile.
We are looking at a number of options to meet Ukraine’s security assistance needs, but we don’t have any information to share,” Pentagon spokesman Jeff Jurgensen said.
The debate over JASSM and the Biden administration’s willingness to consider transferring it make the missile the latest in a long line of sophisticated weapons once considered off-limits to Ukraine.
What can American high-precision long-range missiles JASSM do?
Military analyst Yigal Levin writes that this missile:
- capable of bypassing Russian air defense systems of the S-300 type and above;
- has reduced visibility for radar;
- equipped with artificial intelligence that can recognize targets and adjust the flight based on the terrain;
- equipped with several parallel guidance systems (satellite, laser, thermal and television channels).
On the final trajectory, the missile uses an infrared homing head, which searches for a target and compares it with a standard stored in the on-board computer.
Thanks to this, the declared possible deviation does not exceed three meters, writes “Military”.
The first versions of the AGM-158 flew almost 400 km, the latest ones cover up to 1000 km. The weight of the warhead is 450 kg.
These missiles are in service with the United States and its closest NATO allies.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.