The US will try to surge missile defense weapons into Ukraine by giving Kiev priority access to new production. Washington will take Patriot and NASAMS interceptors intended for other allies and ship them to the war-torn state.
According to the Wall Street Journal, President Joe Biden informed allies that their shipments of air defense munitions would be delayed as Kiev is prioritized over the next 16 months. The outlet says South Korea and the UAE are expected to be most impacted by the move.
The decision comes as Kiev is struggling to defend its cities, troops, and critical infrastructure from Russian missiles and bombs. The AP reports viewing satellite imagery show that Russia has stepped up its attacks on Ukrainian cities in recent months.
While the US plans to send Ukraine interceptors for its Patriot and NASAMS air defense systems, Kiev is hoping to receive launchers and radars as well. President Zelensky has requested an additional seven systems, but only Romania has agreed to send one Patriot platform.
RTX, formerly Raytheon, makes the Patriots and is the former employer of US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. Patriots are the most expensive interceptor in the American arsenal, with the system carrying a $1 billion price tag, while each interceptor runs the US taxpayer $4 million.
Although Washington has urged Kiev to curtail attacks on Russian energy infrastructure to avoid Moscow’s retaliation in kind, Ukraine continues to strike its neighbor’s oil refineries. On Wednesday, a Ukrainian defense official said Kiev had successfully set fire to an oil facility in southern Russia during a drone raid.
Kyle Anzalone is the opinion editor of Antiwar.com, news editor of the Libertarian Institute, and co-host of Conflicts of Interest.
One thing about Wash. is they're consistent in trying to start WWIII.
You nailed that one, sista friend!
The Patriot missile system kind of sucks. Of course all air defense systems suck to one extent or other, but the primary virtue of the Patriots seems to be that they're the most expensive around. They even seem to have trouble hitting the subsonic unpowered glide bombs that Russia is using, and of course what goes up must come down. Ukrainian media have reported a couple of times that fragments found in the apartment buildings supposedly hit by Russian missiles bear writing in English.
If they were trying to use patriots missiles (at 6-10 million USD a pop) to intercept gliding bombs (at a fraction of the cost of a patriot missile) they are using the Patriot wrong.
The role of the Patriot system when dealing with gliding bobs would be to hit the plane trying to drop the bomb. NB this is and was never Patriots intended role (i.e. ambushing such planes) as that would bring the system too close to the front line.
This happens everywhere AA missiles are used – as you put it 'what goes up must come down' so the Russians too are experiencing their own cities hit by their own AA missiles when they either just come down or are pursuing a missile about to hit the building.
Just analysing publicly available information, I find it hard to compare apples to oranges. But we live in crazy times where we are most likely to be disinformed, a basic litteracy in things military is necessary.
Russian and US misille defence ( generic terminology) are very different. Diferent in concept, variety of technologies and intended uses. Price differences, as well.
Patriot was not designed to deal with today’s garden varietyof glide bombs and drones. They are designed to defend against primarily ballistic missiles, including over the horizon capabilities. They are designed to defend against the most serious threats — ling range, high altitude nucllearly capable ballistic missiles and aircraf.
You saw what drones could do when Saudi oil facilities were hit and seriously damaged even though they were defended by Patriot batteries expertly manned by US crew.
Patriots are just not designed to defend a city or any installation, infrastructure or commercial asset. They were not meant to be in a proximity to any residential areas.
It is clear that supplying Patrits to be the all purpose defence is nothing more than our military examining Patriot functions in combat, while in the process of diversifying air defences to meet new war aims.
Using Patriots close to residential areas is irresponsible, but then Ukraine is just a proving ground.
Russian air defenses are very different. Again, they also have over the horizon missile defence systems protecting against the ballistic missiles, aircraft — long range, hight altitude threats. Some are staples, like Patriots — S-400. Others like S-500 and S-600 are higher end, dealing with cruise missiles, hypersonic or MIRV class threats. None yet seriously tested in combat. None of them are in the vicinity of urban areas.
But Russia has is a variety of smaller defence systems that are used close to residential or other infrastructure. A garden variety, some quite old but still good against some type of targets, others new and with different target objective.
No one system can address all types of threats and none are perfect — but a variety of approaches, for a variety of needs seems to be the direction.
We have the tendency to overengineer in order to pack in multifunctional capability and justify the price tag. In this war — lessons are learned.
Since the border Russian city of Belgorod, has become a frequent target of Ukrainian drone attacks, variety of defences are used.
But no S-400 or higher are used so no damage from such massive shells is happening. It very much depends on WHAT comes up — so that coming down is not damaging the object one is trying to protect.
What is happening is simple. Ukraine has been using massive numbers of drone strikes with childish abandon. There is no fool proof defence against those types of attacks. . What is Ukrainian objective? It is purely psychological. By concentrating on one town, impact is greater. By hitting residential areas, the point is made in spades.
The tyoe of warfare where civilians are the real intended target has been demonstrated in WWII, and these tactics have only accelerated ever since. The rules of war — even those practiced in WWI, have been abandined.
The world has no leadership, so backsliding is the outcome. It is brought home by the fact that the strongest power leads in not enforcing the rules of war. As amply demonstrated in Gaza. .
Where did you get this from?
I believe that Patriot was given because it is a fairly old system and hence not one that threatens national security should it fall into Russian hands – and it was is one of the better of the fairly old systems (Hawk being worse/older).
Patriot has shot down a good lot of incoming missiles and prevented far more damage than they have caused by falling down.
S300 and S400 are the only ones produced in significant numbers and yes they are deployed in the vicinity of e.g. Belgorod.
True
Very true.
Including S300 and likely S400.
Then Russia shouldn't be worried about these weapons being provided to Ukraine.
They’re not. They’re annoyed about long range missiles being provided.
I think the Russians might disagree with you.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/n…
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/putin-says-us-patriot-system-used-by-ukraine-shoot-down-russian-plane-last-week-2024-01-31/
I remember that story. They had told the Ukrainians that an unarmed and unescorted transport plane full of Ukrainian POWs to be repatriated was en route and gave them the aircraft’s flight plan. The Patriot crew used that information to shoot the plane down instead of letting it pass. The Russians weren’t “worried”, they were pissed off.
What about the other story?
Also, your initial point was that Patriots suck (to which I sarcastically implied that they shouldn't worry the Russians then). You then inferred that the Ukrainians shot the plane down WITH PATRIOTS.
So:
1) You undermined your point that the Patriots suck (because you believe they were used to shoot down that plane).
2) My point was confirmed because the leader of Russia brought up the Patriots (meaning he IS worried about them).
Thanks for playing!
Shooting down a transport plane which isn’t even trying to evade it is several orders of magnitude easier than its supposed job of hitting a missile. Hell, they could do that in WWI.
Move the goalposts. Gotcha.
Again, what about the other article?
The decision comes as Kiev is struggling to defend its cities, troops, and critical infrastructure from Russian missiles and bombs. The AP reports viewing satellite imagery show that Russia has stepped up its attacks on Ukrainian cities in recent months.
Never mind if it's because of attacks inside Russian territory. It's only Ukrainians that have to pay the price.
Lindsey Graham let the cat out of the bag when he said we were after the mineral resources in Ukraine. Blackrock has been to Ukraine. Ukraine is "open for business", selling public assets to fund the war. CNBC: https://www.bing.com/search?q=blackrock+wants+to+buy+up+Ukrain&form=ANNTH1&refig=040ccdc63c1243c0b43
https://www.bing.com/search?q=blackrock+wants+to+buy+up+Ukrain&form=ANNTH1&refig=040ccdc63c1243c0b43
If a man lends a weapon to his neighbor knowing that his neighbor will kill someone is the lender responsible for the crime?
…Which would take longer than normal to materialize…!