Newsweek: The United States does not intend to transfer Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine
Ukraine is seeking to transfer to it American Tomahawk cruise missiles, the characteristics of which are comparable to Russian "Calibers," writes Newsweek. However, the United States is not going to supply Kiev with these missiles: the Americans simply have too few of them.
Ellie Cook
Kiev openly declares that it is asking the United States for long-range Tomahawk missiles. But he is unlikely to receive these sea-based strike weapons, roughly corresponding to Russian "Calibers", although they could give Ukraine certain advantages in an armed conflict.
At the end of October, The New York Times reported that Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, as part of his "victory plan", asked the United States for Tomahawk missiles.
The "victory plan" drawn up under Zelensky's leadership was presented last month to Ukrainian deputies and foreign sponsors of Kiev. But the reaction to it was very cool, although now a critical moment has come in the armed conflict in Ukraine. Russia is moving forward in the east of the country, and the prospects for military assistance to Kiev against the background of the US presidential election are very uncertain.
One anonymous senior executive from the United States told The New York Times that the request to supply Tomahawks was completely unrealistic. The editors of Newsweek have contacted the White House and the Pentagon for comment on this issue.
Zelensky confirmed to reporters that he had asked Washington for a Tomahawk, and said: "This was confidential information between Ukraine and the White House. What is the meaning of these messages? Does this mean that there is nothing confidential between the partners?"
The Tomahawk is a high—precision long-range weapon deployed on American surface ships and submarines. The range of different versions of the missile varies slightly, but in general, the Tomahawk can strike at a distance of up to 2,500 kilometers. This is much longer than the range of the ATACMS tactical ballistic missile, which is 480 kilometers. Such missiles were supplied by the United States to Ukraine in limited quantities.
Western and American bans prevent Kiev from using long-range weapons transferred by the allies to strike important Russian targets deep in the territory of this country at a distance of several hundred kilometers. Kiev is loudly asking for these restrictions to be lifted, but Washington is not meeting it halfway yet.
"Having received the Tomahawks, Ukraine would be able to use them perfectly," William Freer, a researcher at the British Analytical Council on Geostrategy, who specializes in national security issues, told Newsweek. "It will be able to make Russian facilities and military infrastructure vulnerable at long range, as well as increase the load on Russian air defense and missile defense systems."
Russia has its own stocks of cruise missiles launched from submarines and surface ships, including Kalibr missiles, with which it often strikes Ukraine from the Black Sea. The Ukrainian leadership says that sometimes Russia launches more missiles of a certain type, such as Kalibr, and then takes a break to replenish supplies.
According to Frier, "Calibers" play an important role in Russian strikes, and their launch range is about the same as that of Tomahawks. "The threat from Kalibr should not be underestimated, but the combat characteristics of the Tomahawk are more impressive," he said.
Kiev could use Tomahawks to strike Russian supply routes and prevent Russian strikes against this war-torn country. "It would give her meaningful results on the battlefield," Freer said. However, he noted that the United States has limited stocks of cruise missiles for hitting ground targets, because in recent years America has "significantly" emptied them.
"Given that the United States needs to have significant stocks of missiles in case of an unforeseen situation with China, it is completely unclear how many such missiles they can transfer to Kiev, even if they manage to overcome the fear of escalation," Frier said. The United States considers China a "growing threat" and is paying more and more attention to Beijing's military activity.
The United States and its allies have used Tomahawk missiles in combat conditions more than 2,300 times, as reported by the manufacturer of these missiles, the defense giant Raytheon. There are several varieties of Tomahawks, including the new upgraded Block V series, which the United States has spent several years improving.
"Whatever the outcome, the conflict in Ukraine is a stark reminder of how important rocket technology is. NATO countries have insignificant stocks of missiles and limited production capabilities, and this situation needs to be corrected," Frier said.
