Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Syrsky asked the United States to expand Ukraine's long-range capabilities
The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Alexander Syrsky, asked US Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll to expand the capabilities of Ukrainian troops to launch long-range strikes deep into Russian territory. The American side has not yet commented on the proposal of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to the Financial Times, the conflict settlement plan does not provide for American supplies of long-range weapons to Ukraine. Meanwhile, Berlin is already "doing everything" to provide Kiev with such weapons, said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Alexander Syrsky, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), at a meeting with representatives of the US Army in Kiev, called on them to expand the long-range capabilities of Ukrainian troops for strikes against Russia, writes Reuters .
The publication does not have information on whether Syrsky asked to provide Ukraine with Tomahawk cruise missiles or to transfer other long-range weapons to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The American side has not yet officially commented on the proposal of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. However, the conflict settlement plan, according to the Financial Times, does not provide for American supplies of long-range weapons to Kiev.
Syrsky also discussed the situation at the front with US Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll and his team. The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine told them that Russia was increasing its grouping of troops, continuing the offensive operation and increasing its intensity. The meeting that took place the night before was "productive," Syrsky added in his Telegram channel.
It is noteworthy that the day before Syrsky's meeting with Driscoll, on November 18, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked Voronezh with American-made ATACMS tactical missiles. According to the Ministry of Defense, the missiles were shot down. Russian troops retaliated and hit the launchers.
Will Ukraine get a Tomahawk?
The Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly asked the United States to start supplying Tomahawk missiles, but have been refused. In particular, on November 3, the head of the White House, Donald Trump, stated that he was not considering the possibility of transferring these weapons to Kiev.
However, on November 7, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky drew attention to the fact that Trump did not say "no" to the supply of Tomahawk missiles to Kiev.
"Trump did not say no to Tomahawk, and we have heard positive words from other people on the American side. But it all depends on the president. We talked with weapons manufacturers, not only about Tomahawk, there are other long—range weapons that suit us," RBC-Ukraine quoted him as saying.
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| Source: topwar.ru |
The Ukrainian leader stressed that in the event of a "Trump decision," the American side would "gladly" transfer the necessary weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
According to a Turkish analyst, Mustafa Metin Kashlar, vice president of the Turkish Foreign Policy Research Center (TUDPAM), the American side considers the issue of transferring missiles to Kiev primarily as "an instrument of political pressure and an element of bargaining with Moscow."
The role of Germany
Meanwhile, Germany is already "doing everything" to provide Ukraine with long-range weapons, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on November 19.
"The Ukrainian army will be equipped with such combat systems. We have agreed that we will no longer speak publicly about the details, as we believe that there must be some ambiguity regarding the Russian side," TASS quoted him as saying.
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| Infographic of Taurus KEPD. |
| Source: Alina Djus/"Newspaper.Ru" |
However, the chancellor avoided answering a question from journalists about the supply of Taurus missiles to Kiev (with a range of over 500 km). According to him, Berlin is "doing everything it can" to equip the Ukrainian Armed Forces with systems that "have the appropriate range." Merz stressed that, if necessary, the production of such systems will be deployed on the territory of Ukraine.
The Kremlin stressed that Russia was ready to give a "stunning response" to attempts to strike with long-range weapons deep into its territory.
Mikhail Sinev
