Tag: Javelins

Ukraine claims 60 dead, 100 wounded, in blasts on Crimea as satellite images show destroyed Russian aircraft

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment
Kerch Strait Bridge, Crimea.

by Clara Weiss, WSWS, Aug 13 2022

Anton Gerashenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian minister of internal affairs, claimed on Thursday that 60 pilots and technicians had been killed and 100 people wounded in a series of explosions at a Russian Saki air base on the Black Sea Crimean Peninsula on Tuesday. Since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, the air base has housed the Russian 43rd Independent Naval Assault Air Squadron.

Ukraine claims 60 dead, 100 wounded, in blasts on Crimea as satellite images show destroyed Russian aircraft

Related:

Does Ukraine Have A Stash Of Domestically Developed Ballistic Missiles?

Video via Made in Ukraine

Pentagon acknowledges sending anti-radar missiles to Ukraine; they are already in use

Colin Kahl, the under secretary of defense for policy, said at a press briefing that the US had sent “a number” of the missiles without specifying how many the US has provided or when they were sent. Kahl did not explicitly say what type of anti-radiation missile was sent.

A defense official told CNN the type of missile sent was the AGM-88 High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM).

Biden Authorizes Additional $550 Million Military Aid for Ukraine + Are There Enough Guided Rockets For HIMARS To Keep Up With Ukraine War Demand?

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Biden Authorizes Additional $550 Million Military Aid for Ukraine

The new aid was authorized by the presidential drawdown authority, which allows Biden to send Ukraine weapons and ammunition directly from US military stockpiles. The funds were pulled from the $40 billion Ukraine aid bill that Biden signed back in May, which is meant to last through September 30.

Related:

Are There Enough Guided Rockets For HIMARS To Keep Up With Ukraine War Demand?

So in essence, at a pace suggested by Hertling, Ukraine’s GMLRS monthly burn rate would equal about 29% of the entire planned U.S. procurement for the next five years, not withstanding production rates of the ER GMLRS which have yet to be set.

Given those numbers, what does Ukraine’s use of HIMARS portend for that nation, and the U.S., which might find itself needing these systems in case of a future fight with China, Russia or some other adversary?

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“If each of 16 HIMARS fires three rockets per day, that’s 48 a day or 1,440 per month. 10,000 rockets would last well into 2023 at that rate. On the other hand, if the Ukrainians get the 100 HIMARS they are requesting and each one fires three rockets per day, that’s 300 per day or 9,000 per month.”

‘Slippery Slope… Just Got a Lot Steeper’: US to Send Ukraine Advanced Missiles as Russia Holds Nuke Drills

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

Peace advocates fear the Biden administration’s high-tech arms shipments to Ukraine are increasing the likelihood of a full-scale conflict between the U.S. and Russia.

‘Slippery Slope… Just Got a Lot Steeper’: US to Send Ukraine Advanced Missiles as Russia Holds Nuke Drills

Previously:

Ukraine Says It Might Use US Weapons to Invade Russia

Brandon is going to get us all killed! 😳

Biden: U.S. will provide precision rockets to Ukraine

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Biden: U.S. will provide precision rockets to Ukraine

The U.S. will provide Ukraine with more advanced rocket systems and precision-guided munitions that will give them an edge on the battlefield, President Joe Biden wrote in an opinion article in the New York Times published Tuesday.

But Kyiv has given the United States assurances that the new weapons will be used in Ukraine and not against targets in Russia, senior administration officials told reporters after Biden’s op-ed was published.

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The HIMARS and its munitions are part of a new $700 million aid package for Ukraine, which will be announced on Wednesday, the officials said. The package also includes counterfire radars, a number of air surveillance radars, additional Javelin anti-tank missiles, anti-armor weapons, additional artillery rounds, helicopters, additional tactical vehicles and spare parts, the second official said.

Related:

Kremlin does not trust Zelensky’s promises not to attack Russia with US-made rockets

Russia warns West against providing Ukraine long-range weaponry

US preparing to approve advanced long-range rocket system for Ukraine

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

US preparing to approve advanced long-range rocket system for Ukraine

Senior Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, have pleaded in recent weeks for the US and its allies to provide the Multiple Launch Rocket System, or MLRS. The US-made weapon systems can fire a barrage of rockets hundreds of kilometers — much farther than any of the systems Ukraine already has — which the Ukrainians argue could be a gamechanger in their war against Russia.

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The Biden administration waivered for weeks, however, on whether to send the systems, amid concerns raised within the National Security Council that Ukraine could use the systems to carry out offensive attacks inside Russia, officials said.

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The issue was at the top of the agenda at last week’s two meetings at the White House where deputy Cabinet members convened to discuss national security policy, officials said. At the heart of the matter was the same concern the administration has grappled with since the start of the war– whether sending increasingly heavy weaponry to Ukraine will be viewed by Russia as a provocation that could trigger some kind of retaliation against the US.

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Ukraine is already believed to have carried out numerous cross-border strikes inside Russia, which Ukrainian officials neither confirm nor deny. Russian officials have said publicly that any threat to their homeland would constitute a major escalation and have said that western countries are making themselves a legitimate target in the war by continuing to arm the Ukrainians.

Another major concern inside the Biden administration had been whether the US could afford to give away so many high-end weapons drawn from the military’s stockpiles, the sources said.

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Expanded NATO will “shoot billions” to U.S. arms merchants

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Expanded NATO will “shoot billions” to U.S. arms merchants

If Finland and Sweden are accepted into NATO the countries would join their Nordic neighbors, Denmark, Norway and Iceland. The five countries currently work together under the Nordic Defense Cooperation pact. Bringing NORDEFCO inside NATO would facilitate joint planning, cut off Russian maritime access to St. Petersburg, and strengthen defense of the North Atlantic and Artic sea routes.

Related:

The Port of St. Petersburg and Its Impact on Global Trade

Russia’s second largest city, Saint Petersburg, is among the most crucial locations for shipping and logistics on the planet. It serves as the maritime capital of Russia, being the biggest industrial and transportation center in the nation.

The Port of St. Petersburg also serves as the most vital shipping location between the eastern hemisphere and the west, which is part of the reason it’s also known as the European Gateway of the nation of Russia. Given its importance to global logistics operations, there are major benefits to getting a better understanding of the Port of St. Petersburg.

Raytheon chief warns of delays in replenishing Stinger missile stocks

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

The CEO of Raytheon Technologies told investors Tuesday that the company won’t be able to ramp up production of Stinger missiles until 2023, due to a lack of parts and materials for the weapons that Western allies have rushed to Ukraine.

Thousands of Stinger anti-aircraft missiles have been pulled from stocks across Europe and the United States and sent to Ukraine, but as yet there is no solid plan to replenish the stocks for the countries that donated them.

Raytheon chief warns of delays in replenishing Stinger missile stocks