160719-N-ZZ999-112. PACIFIC OCEAN (July 19, 2016) USS Coronado (LCS 4), an Independence-variant littoral combat ship, launches the first over-the-horizon missile engagement using a Harpoon Block 1C missile. (U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Bryce Hadley/Released)
The Russian military will take “preventive measures” if the US attempted to supply anti-ship missiles to Ukraine, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. on May 20.
Peskov was commenting on a recent report by You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., which revealed that the US is working to supply Kiev forces with advanced anti-ship missiles.
Reuters has quoted three US government officials and two congressional sources as saying that Washington was working to directly handover anti-ship missiles to Kiev forces, or to supply them via the US European allies.
The anti-ship missiles in question are the Harpoon made by Boeing and the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) made by Kongsberg and Raytheon Technologies.
The Harpoon is a sea-skimming anti-ship missile that is equipped with a radar altimeter and a GPS-aided inertial navigation system, or INS. For terminal guidance, the missile is equipped with an active radar seeker. When launched from surface, the missile has a range of 124 to 278 kilometers depending on the version. The missile is armed with a 221 kg penetration high-explosive blast warhead.
According to Reuters, there are several issues keeping Ukraine from receiving the Harpoon. One of the main issues is the limited availability of platforms to launch Harpoons from a ground launcher. The missile was originally designed to be launched from naval vessels or warplanes.
Two US officials told Reuters that the US is currently working on potential solutions that included pulling a launcher off of a US Navy vessel.
The NSM is an anti-ship and land-attack missile that is equipped with a radar altimeter, a GPS-aided INS system and a terrain contour matching, or TERCOM, system. The missile is equipped with an imaging infrared homing seeker with an onboard target database for terminal guidance. It has a range of more than 185 kilometers and a 125 kilogram high-explosive fragmentation warhead.
It will be easier for the US to supply the NSM to Ukraine as a costal defense system based on the missile has been already developed. The system also takes less than 14 days training to operate.
Military experts and industry executives said that the Harpoon and the NSM both cost about $1.5 million per round, according to Reuters.
140923-N-MB306-007. PACIFIC OCEAN (Sept. 23, 2014) A Kongsberg Naval Strike Missile (NSM) is launched from the littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) during missile testing operations off the coast of Southern California. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Zachary D. Bell/Released)
US officials told Reuters that Washington wants to supply these advanced missiles to Kiev forces to help Ukraine “defeat Russia’s naval blockade”. This ill-based justification is either the result of poor military knowledge by US officials, or a well thought out propaganda stunt.
Despite being capable, these anti-ship missiles won’t be enough to simply “defeat” Russia’s naval blockade on Ukraine’s ports. The reason for that is very simple, the Russian Navy has several other means to make sure that nothing can enter Ukrainian waters without Moscow permission, from submarines and fighter jets armed with anti-ship missiles to long-range costal defense system. Not to mention the Russian military ability to carrying out precision missile strikes on Ukraine’s ports from the land, air and sea.
US military planners without a doubt understand this very well. The real purpose behind the US plan to arm Kiev forces with anti-ship missile is simply to further escalate the conflict in Ukraine and make sure that it will not end any time soon.
