A United States Air Defense System to Provide Security Assistance to the Ukrainians Against Russia’s Violations of the Article Article II: Austin and Milley
Austin said the US will provide security assistance to the Ukrainians for as long as it takes but that what will happen in Ukrainian is hard to predict.
Austin said that Ukrainian forces have been using technology, like the HIMARS, in the right way to take away capabilities from the Russians.
Ukraine has been calling for the US to send the advanced long-range air defense system that is highly effective at intercepting ballistic and cruise missiles as it comes under a barrage of Russian missile and drone attacks that have destroyed key infrastructure across the country. It would be the most effective defensive weapon system sent to the country, and it will allow NATO nations in eastern Europe to protect their airspace.
“It’s not just about the equipment that you have. He said that it was about how you use that equipment, how you mix things up to create battlefield effects that can create opportunities.
The Ukrainians have amazed the world with their dedication and ability to defend their democracy, he said. “And that willingness to fight has rallied the international community in an effort to help provide them the security assistance so that they can continue to fight.”
During the call, a White House statement said, Biden “expressed his condemnation of Russia’s missile strikes across Ukraine, including in Kyiv, and conveyed his condolences to the loved ones of those killed and injured in these senseless attacks. President Biden pledged to provide Ukraine with support needed to defend itself.
The statement said that Biden had continued his engagement with allies and partners to continue imposing costs on Russia and to hold Russia accountable for its war crimes and atrocities.
Ukraine’s allies understand the need. Ahead of a meeting in Brussels Wednesday of Ukraine’s supporters, General Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that “after Russia attacked the Ukrainian civilian population, we will be looking for air defense options that will help the Ukrainians.”
As of a Department of Defense briefing in late September, the US had yet to deliver NASAMS to Ukraine. At the time, he was a brigadier. Two of the systems are expected to arrive in the next two months, while the rest will arrive by the end of the year.
Estimating Russian missile inventories is guesswork. Russian President Volodymr Zelensky said in May that Russia had probably used up a fifth of it’s precision-missile arsenal. That looks doubtful at this point.
“We can confirm that Russian military personnel that are based in Crimea have been piloting Iranian UAVs, using them to conduct strikes across Ukraine, including strikes against Kyiv,” Kirby said, referring to unmanned aerial vehicles.
Kuleba said that the claims were nonsense and that Putin was trying to change the pace of war in his favor. And Ukraine’s defense intelligence agency claimed in a statement on Monday that Moscow had been planning a “massive” missile attack on Ukraine since early last week.
The deputy head of Russia’s security council said recently that Moscow should aim for the complete dismantlement of Zelensky’s regime.
John Kirby, a spokesperson for the National Security Council, said Monday that there will likely be additional support packages for Ukraine announced “in the very near future.”
Kirby told CNN that it was obvious that he was feeling the pressure at home and overseas.
Last week, Biden delivered a stark warning about the dangers of Putin’s nuclear threats, invoking the prospect of “Armageddon.” But multiple US officials have said the comment was not based on any new intelligence about Putin’s intentions or changes in Russia’s nuclear posture.
Ukraine’s missile inventory during the recent missile attacks in the wake of the Kremenchuk crisis, as portrayed by the U.S. Energy Minister Jens Stoltenberg
As Ukraine races to shore up its missile defenses in the wake of the assault, the math for Moscow is simple: A percentage of projectiles are bound to get through.
This week, a small amount of that inventory was dispatched. Russia has recently taken to using more older and less precise KH-22 missiles, of which it has large inventories, according to Western officials. They are large enough to take out aircraft carriers. A KH-22 was responsible for the dozens of casualties at a shopping mall in Kremenchuk in June.
The question of longevity and sustainability remains because it is unclear how long Iran can or would continue providing weaponry – including more advanced missiles – to Russia.
The Russians have also been adapting the S-300 – normally an air defense missile – as an offensive weapon, with some effect. Their speed makes them hard to catch, and they wreaked havoc in Zaporizhzhia and Mykolaiv. They are not accurate.
The missile attacks this week have caused serious damage, and there is no doubt about it. The Energy Minister said that at least 30% of the country’s energy infrastructure had been hit by Russian missiles.
He said that this was the first time in the war that Russia has targeted energy infrastructure.
Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary General of NATO, stated on Tuesday that more systems were needed forUkraine to better halt missiles. A lot of the incoming missiles were shot down by the Ukrainian air defense systems provided by NATO Allies, he said. There is a need for more if not all of them are shot down.
Ukrainian air defense battalions have become innovative: One video from Monday, referenced by Zelensky, showed a soldier using a shoulder-held missile to bring down a Russian projectile, purportedly a cruise missile.
Estimating the proportion of Iranian-made Shahed drones being eliminated is more difficult, because so many are being used. Zelensky said that “every 10 minutes I receive a message about the enemy’s use of Iranian Shaheds.” But he also said the bulk of them were being shot down.
Ukrainian Defense Minister: “A new era of air defense,” a “hopeful” reply to Ukraine’s Defense Contact Group meeting
Missiles for their existing systems, a transition to Western-origin air defense system and early warning capabilities were some of the things thatUkraine requested in a wish-list that was obtained by the meeting.
Speaking after the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting, he said such a system would not “control all the airspace over Ukraine, but they are designed to control priority targets that Ukraine needs to protect. Short-range low-altitude systems and then medium-range medium altitude and then long-range and high altitude systems are what you will see, it is a mix of all of these.
The Western systems are still in their infancy. The first unit of the US National Advanced Surface to Air Missile System is expected soon, according to the Ukrainian Defense Minister, who said a new era of air defense has begun.
“This is only the beginning. After meeting with Ukraine’s donors at the Brussels meeting, Reznikov said they need more and that there is an item on the agenda that would strengthen Ukraine’s air defense. Feeling optimistic.”
But these are hardly off-the-shelf-items. The IRIS-T had to be manufactured for Ukraine. Western governments have a limited inventory of such systems. And Ukraine is a very large country under missile attack from three directions.
Kamikaze and Puma Drones: The War in Ukraine After the Sept. 11 Abrupt Decrees In Poland and Ukraine
Poland has been praised by the senior military commander of the country for training an air defense battalion that destroyed nine of 11 Shaheeds.
He said Poland had providedUkraine with equipment to destroy drones. According to reports, the Polish government bought advanced Israeli equipment and was then transferring it to Ukraine despite Israel’s policy of not selling defensive technology to Kyiv.
The White House is not providing Kyiv with larger drones like the Predator and Reaper that U.S. forces used in the wars that began after the Sept. 11 attacks. Both aircraft can fly for hours while sending live video feeds of the ground and carry laser-guided missiles and guided bombs.
Many of the firearms and weapons that are used in the war in Ukraine are called loitering munitions by the defense industry. These drones explode on impact, which is why they are sometimes referred to as kamikaze drones.
In March, the Pentagon announced it would send 100 “tactical unmanned aerial systems” called Switchblades. In the month after, the administration said it would give 300 more. Eight days later, the Defense Department said it would send 120 Phoenix Ghost drones to Ukraine. In July, the United States provided funds for Ukraine to buy 580 more of them.
In August, the Pentagon said it would send Puma drones — small aircraft that soldiers toss into the air to launch and then control by remote control from up to nine miles away. Pumas can stay at altitudes of about 500 feet.
Iranian drones as a loitering munition: Implications for the relations between the United States and the Russians, and the implication of Iran
This shipment is expected to increase Iranian support for the Russian war effort. While the precise timing of when the shipment will arrive in Russia is unclear, officials believe the weapons will definitely be delivered before the end of the year.
The Iranian drones are known as a “loitering munition” because they are capable of circling for some time in an area identified as a potential target and only striking once an enemy asset is identified.
The sending of Iranian weaponry to Russia is likely to cause a further worsening of relations with the US. On Monday, the US envoy to Iran Rob Malley said the Biden administration is not going to “waste our time” on talks to revive the nuclear deal “if nothing’s going to happen.” The US imposed further sanctions on Iran because of Tehran’s support for Russia in the Ukraine war and the death of a young woman who took part in protests.
Earlier this month John Kirby, the communications coordinator at the National Security Council, said the presence of Iranian personnel was evidence of Tehran’s direct engagement in the conflict.
The drones have been used to target civilians. Iran, in the face of all the evidence, keeps lying and denying that it is happening.
Last month the US sanctioned an air transportation provider for its involvement in the shipment of the Iranian drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to Russia. The US is also ready to “target producers and procurers” contributing to the UAV program, the Treasury Department’s Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence said.
State of Ukraine at the Nov. 4 U.N. Midterm Elections: Radio Report from the Kremlin, the Pentagon, and the IAEA
Anticipation is mounting for a possible battle for Kherson, a Russian-occupied city in southern Ukraine. Kremlin-installed officials have been evacuating civilians in preparation for a potential Ukrainian counteroffensive.
And Ukraine will be watching America’s midterm election results this week, especially after some Republicans warned that the party could limit funding for Ukraine if it wins control of the House of Representatives, as forecast.
Also Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will host Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. Sweden is supposed to meet certain conditions before it can join NATO.
Ukrainians are expected to be on the agenda when the United Nations General Assembly debates a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Russia rejoined a U.N.-brokered deal to safely export grain and other agricultural goods from Ukraine, on Nov. 2. Moscow had suspended its part in the deal a few days prior after saying Ukraine had launched a drone attack on its Black Sea ships.
The Pentagon announced $400 million in additional security aid to Ukraine, on Nov. 4, to include 45 refurbished T-72 tanks, 1,100 Phoenix Ghost drones and other vehicles, technology and training.
Past recaps can be found here. You can find more of NPR’s coverage here. Also, listen and subscribe to NPR’s State of Ukraine podcast for updates throughout the day.
The Strategic Defense Mission to Ukraine in the Light of the Progress of the United States and the Ruling of Cold War II. A Joint Joint Joint Task Force
A senior administration official, two US officials, and a third have said that the Biden administration is finalising plans to send the missile defense system to Ukraine.
The Pentagon’s plan still needs to be approved by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin before it is sent to President Joe Biden for his signature. The three officials told CNN that approval is expected.
It is not clear how many missile launchers will be sent but a typical Patriot battery includes a radar set that detects and tracks targets, computers, power generating equipment, an engagement control station and up to eight launchers, each holding four ready to fire missiles.
Once the plans are finalized, the Patriots are expected to ship quickly in the coming days and Ukrainians will be trained to use them at a US Army base in Grafenwoehr, Germany, officials said.
Ukraine has been asking for the system for months but the logistical challenges of delivering it and operating it are immense. Despite those obstacles, “the reality of what is going on the ground” led the administration to make the decision, the senior administration official told CNN, noting the continuing intense Russian missile barrages.
Unlike smaller air defense systems, Patriot missile batteries need much larger crews, requiring dozens of personnel to properly operate them. The training for Patriot missile batteries is normally done in multiple months, but now it will be necessary under the pressure of daily aerial attacks from Russia.
In the past, the US has sent equipment to NATO allies like Poland in order to make them stronger against the Russian invasion.