Boris Johnson said Ukraine must be equipped with long-range multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) to help Kyiv’s hostile forces prevent Russian invaders from entering Donbass.
But the prime minister has not pledged the UK to send the powerful M270 missile system, which Kyiv has been pleading for from Britain, the United States and other NATO members for weeks.
Johnson said the MLRS would allow Ukraine to “defend itself against this very brutal Russian artillery and this is where the world should go” in an interview with Bloomberg TV.
He added that Putin’s forces “continue to chew the ground” in the Donbass region, making “slow but fearful tangible progress” as they approach Severodonetsk, Ukraine’s easternmost city.
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Johnson’s comments seem to confirm that there has been a significant change in the position on weapons among Western countries.
Earlier, the United States rejected Ukraine’s request for long-range missiles, but overnight briefings showed that the White House is now ready to deliver them. A report may appear next week, CNN reported, about weapons that could have a significant impact on battles.
Much more powerful than conventional artillery, the M270 MLRS missiles have a maximum range of more than 100 miles (165 km) and up to 12 shells per minute can be fired from an armored vehicle. Their firepower far exceeds the initial commitment made by NATO members to send “defense systems” to Ukraine only when the war began.
The British M270 has a range of 52 miles, although 44 of the army’s stockpiles are improving to 93 miles. Ukraine’s existing conventional artillery has a maximum range of about 15 miles, including M177 howitzers delivered by the US military to help repel the Russians in Donbass.
The surface-to-surface missiles were manufactured by Lockheed Martin and purchased from the United States, the United Kingdom and nearly 30 other countries. Some smaller countries were willing to send MLRS weapons through larger third countries, but to the disappointment of Ukrainians, larger nations were unwilling to continue.
Kira Rudyk, a Ukrainian MP from the centrist Golos party, said during a visit to the United Kingdom that Ukraine needed more powerful weapons. “There is this discussion about getting more MLRS systems. I know that the British Government is currently deciding whether they can reach us from the United Kingdom, and that will be fantastic. That’s exactly what we need right now, “she said.
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