General Jack Keane on Ukraine's Need for Long-Range Missiles to Counter Russian Drones

The Need for Extended Range Weapons

• 🎯 Russia has created a sanctuary for its military systems by targeting Ukrainian civilian populations and energy infrastructure.
• 🚀 Current weapons like HIMARS (50-70 miles) and ATACMS (190 miles) lack the range to strike key Russian manufacturing and launch sites.
• 💡 The primary targets are the Shahid drones, manufactured at the Abaluga center, and bombers launching cruise missiles, which are beyond the reach of existing Ukrainian weaponry.

Strategic Implications of Long-Range Missiles

• ⚠️ Russia has been using air and sea-launched cruise missiles, hypersonic missiles, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles since the war's outset.
• ⚖️ Ukraine's request for Tomahawk missiles is aimed at leveling the playing field and striking the sources of damage, not to expand the war or attack civilian centers like Moscow.
• 🤝 The motivation is to end the war by breaking down the sanctuary Russia has created, rather than prolonging it.

Ground-Launched Tomahawk System (Typhoon)

• 🚢 Tomahawk missiles, capable of traveling over a thousand miles, can reach these critical Russian targets.
• 📦 Since Ukraine lacks air or sea launch capabilities, the proposed solution is ground-launched Tomahawk missiles, known as Typhoon, which are housed in shipping containers.
• 🛠️ This ground-launch system, though not previously used by the US, is imaginative and designed for deployment in various theaters, including the Pacific.
• 🎯 The system features four launchers within a 40ft shipping container, allowing for effective deployment of these long-range weapons.