President Volodymyr Zelensky claims that as of September 25, Ukraine has received sophisticated US air defense systems.
Ukraine has never before acknowledged receiving the Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS). Washington gave its approval for Kiev to receive this shipment of weapons at the end of the previous month. With contemporary armaments, Kiev has long sought backing from the US and its allies.
“The US must take the initiative and provide Ukraine with air defense equipment. I want to express my gratitude to President Joe Biden for his thoughtful choice “said Zelensky.
The US provided HIMARS and numerous other missile launchers to help Ukraine attack and deal with Russia, and President Zelensky thanked them as well.
The American Air Force Journal identified NASAMS as a critical piece of equipment that might aid Ukrainian forces in shooting down Russian cruise missiles, an existential threat to the Ukrainian military, in an article published earlier this month.
A collaborative project between Raytheon and the Norwegian defense company Kongsberg, NASAMS is an air defense system. The system is made up of three parts, according to Raytheon, including the AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel radar, the advanced medium-range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM), which has a range of 30 to 50 km, and the Fire Distribution Center (FDC)
The Lugansk province and other towns and cities in eastern and southern Ukraine are entirely under the control of Russian forces and rebels after seven months of armed operations in the country. Kiev launched a counteroffensive at the beginning of September and took back control of a number of cities in the northeastern Kharkov area.
On September 12, Kiev’s president, Volodymy Zelensky, declared that it had reclaimed 6,000 square kilometers of Russian occupied land.
The US is by far Ukraine’s largest sponsor. Since the start of the crisis, Washington has sent Kiev more than $15 billion in security assistance. The White House requested an additional $11.7 billion from the US Congress in early September to support Kiev’s military in the first quarter of 2023.
The supply of HIMARS guided rockets to Ukraine, which can precisely attack targets from a distance of more than 80 kilometers, has been made public by the Pentagon without hesitation. Additionally, US authorities have confirmed that Ukraine has promised not to attack Russian territory with US missiles.
In addition to launching guided rockets, HIMARS systems are also capable of launching 300 km-range short-range ATACMS tactical missiles.
Washington recently unveiled a new $600 million weapons package for Ukraine that includes military hardware as well as military training and assistance. Prior to this, on September 8, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken proposed fresh military aid for Ukraine and its neighbors totaling $ 2 billion.
Moscow has repeatedly criticized the West’s delivery of weapons to Kiev, stressing that this will only prolong the conflict and increase the risk of a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO.
