Ukraine prepared to use British missiles to strike CrimeaWe are defending against the most anti-European force of the modern world, says Zelensky
George Grylls
Defence Correspondent
Friday February 10 2023, 9.20am GMT, The Times
Ukraine is prepared to use British long-range missiles to hit Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, in a potential major escalation of western involvement in the war.Rishi Sunak promised to send Ukraine more military aid following a visit by President Zelensky to Britain this week. Discussions are now taking place over whether this should include Harpoon anti-ship missiles or air-to-surface Storm Shadows.
Ukrainian defence sources confirmed to The Times that Kyiv would be prepared to use the missiles to strike Crimea following a warning from Zelensky that longer-range weapons from western allies would strike “deep in the occupied territories”.Several explosions could be heard in Kyiv this morning as officials reported high-voltage facilities across Ukraine being hit. Ukrenergo, the power grid operator, said several facilities in eastern, southern and western Ukraine had been hit, causing disruption to power supply.
The air force said in a statement that seven Iranian-made “kamikaze” drones were launched from the Sea of Azov, and six Kalibr cruise missiles from the Black Sea. The air force said it had shot down five drones and five Kalibr missiles.
Zelensky met European parliamentarians in Brussels yesterday, where he renewed demands for fighter jets as Russia appeared to launch a long-anticipated offensive in eastern Ukraine. “We are defending against the most anti-European force of the modern world,” Zelensky said. “We are defending ourselves — we Ukrainians on the battlefield — along with you.”
Harpoon missiles cost about £1.2 million each and have a maximum range of 150 miles. Storm Shadow missiles cost about £2.2 million and can fire at targets as far as 350 miles away, although modified versions for export have a significantly shorter range.
Talks are now taking place to decide exactly how many British long-range missiles could be sent, despite previous concerns that enabling Ukraine to launch cross-border strikes on Russia could escalate the conflict.Western allies have softened their stance in recent weeks on sending offensive weapons and appear to have accepted Kyiv’s arguments that Crimea is occupied territory that constitutes a legitimate target.
President Biden effectively doubled the range of the Ukrainian army last week by including ground-launched small-diameter bombs (GLSDB), capable of hitting targets 93 miles away, in the latest package of American support.
After the donation of GLSDBs, Ukraine promised not to hit targets in Russia but did not rule out Crimea.On his visit to London, Zelensky thanked a “coalition” of western countries for their “latest” gift of longer-range missiles. “It will allow us to make the evil completely retreat from our country by destroying its airbases deep in the occupied territories,” he said.
Sidharth Kaushal of the Royal United Services Institute, a defence think tank, said the West needed to give Ukraine longer-range weapons to continue hitting Russian ammunition depots. In recent months, President Putin’s generals have begun withdrawing their command centres and weapons stores further from the front line after they were targeted by Ukrainians using US rocket launchers. Kaushal said:
“What we want is to give them something that hits targets at that 100km-plus range but is not so long-range that it enables strikes into Russia.”He added that Harpoon anti-ship missiles, which have already been given to Ukraine by Denmark, could be adapted to be fired from trucks, although they would be less accurate when attacking ground targets. He said it would also be possible to fire Storm Shadow missiles from the ground, but it was more likely that these would be fitted to Ukrainian aircraft.
Kaushal cautioned, however, that
sending Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine would mean Britain going further than the US. Biden has repeatedly refused to provide Army Tactical Missile System projectiles, which have a shorter range.“Diplomatically, that would put the Biden administration in a very difficult position,” he said. “I imagine that is something policymakers in Whitehall are not necessarily keen to do. It would also enable proper, cross-border strikes against Russia.”Ukraine prepared to use British missiles to strike Crimea | News | The Times