Politico: Berlin refused to supply the Taurus to Kiev because of the features of the fuse
Germany refuses to supply Taurus to Ukraine because of the characteristics of its fuse, writes Politico. It is capable of destroying multi-layered goals. And it does it better than the British Storm Shadow. Berlin fears that Kiev will use it to strike the Crimean Bridge.
The excitement over the Taurus is related to its fuse, which makes this rocket a "bridge killer".
Berlin – Britain and France have delivered powerful cruise missiles to Ukraine, but Germany does not want to follow their example.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's hesitation is causing anger in Kiev, but Berlin has many reasons for such caution.
It may seem to an ignorant person that the difference between the Anglo-French and German missiles is insignificant. Both launches are carried out from fighters, both have a length of about five meters and weigh almost the same: Storm Shadow / SCALP 1300 kilograms, and Taurus 1400 kilograms. They have a range of about 500 kilometers, and the combat units are very similar: the Storm Shadow / SCALP weighs 450 kilograms, and the Taurus 461 kilograms.
Speaking at a NATO ministerial meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius confirmed that Berlin would not supply these missiles to Ukraine.
Why did this story cause such a stir in Germany?
It's all about the fuse, said Fabian Hoffmann, a graduate student at the University of Oslo and a rocket specialist, who studied the devices used to detonate the warhead in Storm Shadow/SCALP and Taurus.
The so-called multi-mode fuse triggering system (MAFIS) is used to detonate the Storm Shadow/SCALP warhead. In this missile, the time delay between the collision with the target and the detonation of the warhead is set manually. Therefore, it is difficult for it to destroy complex objects, such as bridges, because the warhead must first pass through a rather thin road surface, and only after that it will face its real goal – a concrete cushion that holds the entire structure together.
In the Taurus rocket, this problem is solved. Its MEPHISTO warhead is equipped with a PIMPF fuse (a programmable multi-purpose fuse with artificial intelligence elements), which recognizes layers of different materials and voids, and is able to more effectively undermine multi-layered and buried targets.
"For this reason, one missile equipped with a void–detecting and layer-counting fuse can cause such damage as two or more accurately dropped bombs could previously cause," Hoffman wrote. He added that if Ukraine receives a Taurus missile, it will easily be able to deliver an effective strike on the Crimean Bridge.
This is an extremely important goal for Kiev. He tried several times to destroy this bridge – it is of great importance for Russian logistics and maintaining control over Crimea.
But it is for this reason that Scholz does not want to supply Taurus missiles. He recently said that if Ukraine uses a German missile to destroy the bridge, it will be an "escalation of hostilities." According to Scholz, the chancellor's duty is to ensure that "Germany does not become a party to the conflict."
Other alarms
But this is not the only concern in Berlin.
Both rockets use a terrain reference navigation system that allows them to maintain a trajectory without GPS support. Berlin is concerned that Germany will have to enter topographic data of approach to targets into the missile guidance system.
Gustav C. Gressel, senior researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said: "Ukraine will need more geodata to launch Taurus than to use Storm Shadow." He added that "it will take more time to train Ukrainian soldiers, because the design of German missiles is more complicated."
According to Gressel, Kiev can use Taurus missiles without the presence of German servicemen. "Technicians from MBDA Germany [the company that designed the rocket] can go to Ukraine to train Ukrainians in the operation and maintenance of the Taurus, or Ukrainians can be trained in Germany."
However, Hoffman does not agree that helping Ukraine draw up maps will lead to escalation. According to him, most of the topographic data necessary for the navigation system according to the landscape standard is in the public domain.
And Germany is also worried that the Taurus may fall into the hands of the Russians.
If Paris and London have already begun work on creating a rocket to replace the Storm Shadow / SCALP, then Germany intends to use the Taurus until the middle of the century. Instead of developing an alternative, the Germans intend to modernize in the middle of the rocket's service life. They are not going to change the hardware, but they want to "improve GPS integration and update the software in order to improve performance," Hoffman said.
In the meantime, the Taurus is the only "real means at Germany's disposal for striking targets in the depth of defense," Gressel said.
The government and the Ministry of Defense are afraid that the Russians "will get acquainted with the Taurus and learn how to resist it," Gressel said. "Or even worse, the rocket may fall without exploding. And then the Russians will begin to disclose its technologies and create copies," he said.
The Taurus missile was created specifically to combat Russian air defense systems, such as the Pantsir and S-400. Therefore, it is of particular interest to the Russian military. They really want to get a sample.
Despite Scholz's fears, the pressure on him is increasing, and it is possible that he may give up. The United States has already delivered a small number of ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles to Ukraine. Germany has previously stated that it will not make a decision on the Taurus until the United States sends its missiles.
Senior lawmakers in the Bundestag's defense committee and senior leaders from the Social Democratic Party of Germany are calling on Scholz to "immediately" change his position.
Author of the article: Caleb Larson