This withdrawal of the Army’s artillery shells, air defense missiles, armored vehicles and tactical missile systems with a range of nearly 200 miles represents more immediate help for Ukraine as it attempts to blunt recent Russian advances and intensify missile attacks against Ukrainian critical infrastructure.
Last month, the Biden administration secretly shipped the long-range version of ATACMS to Ukraine for the first time in two years – and kyiv has already used the weapon multiple times to strike deep behind Russian lines.
“One of the things we’ve been able to see is that when Ukraine is supplied, they’ve been able to be effective,” Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. CQ Brown said Thursday during ‘a discussion at Georgetown University.
The immediate billion-dollar aid and long-range missiles follow a similar decision by the United Kingdom, which first sent its long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine in May 2023, giving in kyiv the possibility of hitting targets up to 250 kilometers away. The weapon, launched from Ukrainian fighter jets, allowed Ukraine to precisely target munitions depots, bridges and other critical infrastructure deep in Russian-occupied Crimea.
The UK this week announced its largest aid package to Ukraine to date, which includes 1,600 missiles and more Storm Shadows. France also sent its SCALP missile, with a similar range.
A Czech official also confirmed Thursday that his government’s initiative to pool European funds to buy hundreds of thousands of artillery shells from countries outside the European Union was bearing fruit, and that the first tranche of 155mm and 122mm ammunition would arrive in Ukraine in June.
Politices
