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Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine's Sapsan ballistic missile to enter serial production following successful combat testing
Ukraine's domestically developed short-range Sapsan ballistic missile has successfully completed combat testing and is in the process of serial production, Ukrainian media reported on June 13. The missile, with a payload of 480 kg, completed testing in May after successfully striking a Russian military target at a range of nearly 300 km, Valentyn Badrak, head of the an independent Ukrainian think Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies told Ukraine's Defense Ministry reportedly dedicated a department to formulate and test the missile. There is no reported timeline as to when the missiles can be seen in regular use on the battlefield. Domestically produced long-range weapons are of key importance to Ukraine's defense strategy, as Western partners have been in delivering adequate weaponry amid increasing Russian attacks and offensives. The news comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a congressional hearing on June 10 that the United States will reduce funding allocated for military assistance to Ukraine in its upcoming defense budget In November 2024, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine has produced its first 100 missiles. Since then, Ukraine has continued to increase domestic weapon production. Zelensky said on April 16 that over of the weapons used at the front line are now produced in Ukraine, including over 95% of drones used at front line. Zelensky also previously revealed that Ukraine had developed another domestic-made weapon, a missile-drone Palianytsia. As Ukraine attempt to increase its defense production, Russia has continued to unleash large-scale attacks on Ukrainian cities, regularly launching hundreds of drones to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses. Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) with the Kyiv Independent that Russia's production of ballistic missiles has increased by at least 66% over the past year. Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said in late 2024 that Ukraine also resumed and scaled up serial production of Neptune cruise missiles, modifying them to have a greater range. Kyiv has received a number of long-range missiles from partners, such as U.S.-made ATACMS, British Storm Shadow, or French SCALP/T. Despite Ukrainian requests, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on June 12 that Berlin has no plans to provide Taurus long-range missiles to Kyiv. Read also: Germany to supply new Iris-T air defense systems to Ukraine, rules out Taurus missiles We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
New York Times
04-03-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Ukraine Races to Salvage U.S. Alliance After Trump Halts Aid
A day after President Trump ordered the suspension of American military assistance, Ukrainian diplomats and politicians scrambled on Tuesday to find a way to salvage its alliance with Washington while the war weary nation prepared for the possibility that it will have to fight on without U.S. support. With the White House and the Kremlin growing ever more closely aligned, Ukraine was seeking to shore up support from its European allies, many of whom were quick to offer reassurances on Tuesday. Military officials were assessing how long Ukraine's own stockpiles would last before the situation led to critical gaps on the front. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine did not comment directly on the aid suspension — which will affect more than $1 billion in arms and ammunition in the pipeline and on order — but he convened senior civilian and military leaders to discuss 'special issues concerning our national resilience.' 'We are working on all possible scenarios to protect Ukraine,' he said in his nightly address to the nation on Monday. 'The base line scenario is to hold positions and create conditions for proper diplomacy, for the soonest possible end to this war with a decent peace.' In comments that seemed aimed at addressing President Trump's accusations that he doesn't want peace, Mr. Zelensky added: 'We need peace — real, fair peace — not endless war. And we need security guarantees.' An emergency meeting in the Ukrainian parliament was convened on Tuesday to assess the impact of the latest pressure from Trump administration while soldiers in the trenches woke up to the news that an already grueling war could get even more challenging, and brutal. The decision to suspend the delivery of aid came three days after an explosive meeting at the White House in which Mr. Trump berated Mr. Zelensky and called him ungrateful — a rupture in relations that might be difficult to repair. In the streets and in the halls of Ukraine's government, there were cries of betrayal. But more than anger there was a sense of sadness and disbelief. The first thing that came to mind upon hearing the news was President Franklin D. Roosevelt's phrase that 'this date will go down in infamy,' Oleksandr Merezhko, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in parliament, said in an interview. 'It was a kind of Pearl Harbor, a political Pearl Harbor, for us.' It is all the more painful, Mr. Merezhko said, 'when it comes not from your enemy, but from whom you consider to be your friend.' 'This is awful,' he added. 'It's like the worst betrayal.' Mykhailo Samus, the deputy director at the Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies in Ukraine, an independent institution, said a cutoff in aid would mean 'that the U.S. is conducting a joint operation with Russia to force Ukraine — the victim of aggression — into surrender.' 'The consequences would be a blow to the U.S.'s position as the former leader of the West,' he added. The impact to Ukraine would also be severe and grow with time, Mr. Samus said. But 'if Trump thinks, or his advisers think, that there is some kind of switch that turns off the Armed Forces of Ukraine,' Mr. Samus added, then the administration has fundamentally misunderstand why Ukrainians are fighting, their will to carry on and the current dynamics on the battlefield. European leaders — who will convene in Brussels on Thursday to discuss both support for Kyiv and the urgent need for Europe to build up its own military capabilities — were quick to rush to Ukraine's defense Tuesday morning. Ursula von der Leyen, who heads the executive arm of the 27-nation European Union, said: 'This is Europe's moment and we must live up to it.' Appearing in Brussels, she proposed a new program that would make 150 billion euros in loans to member states to fund defense investment. Britain's deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, said America's suspension of military aid to Ukraine was 'a very serious moment.' But she told the BBC that Prime Minister Keir Starmer would continue to work with the U.S., Europe and Ukraine to achieve a lasting peace. Asked whether Mr. Starmer might come to regret his cordial meeting last week with Mr. Trump and the invitation for a second state visit, she said that Mr. Starmer 'won't choose between the U.S. and Europe.' The Kremlin, not surprisingly, rejoiced at the latest news. 'If it's true, then this is a decision which could really push the Kyiv regime to a peace process,' Dmitry S. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, told reporters. 'It's obvious that the United States has been the main supplier of this war,' he added. 'If the U.S. stops those supplies, this will be the best contribution to peace, I think.' However, Ukrainians and Western military analysts said that rather than speeding the end of the war, the move could give Moscow even more incentive to keep fighting. They noted that it was Mr. Putin who started the war and whose army is on the offensive, albeit slowly. 'There is no evidence that Russia would be prepared to accept a deal, and what that would be,' said Malcolm Chalmers, deputy director general of the Royal United Services Institute, a research group in London. 'Indeed this decision will encourage Putin to ask for more — including Ukrainian demilitarization and neutrality.' The pause will halt the delivery of interceptor missiles for Patriot and NASAMS air defense systems, which have saved an untold number of lives as they provide the best shield for Ukrainian cities and critical infrastructure from missile and drone attacks. While military analysts and Ukrainian officials have said Kyiv is in a better position to sustain its war effort than it was in late 2023, when Congress suspended assistance for months, the move would have cascading effects that will grow with time.
