The Ukrainian military said on Thursday it had used ATACMS ballistic missiles to strike a Russian radar station to reduce Moscow’s ability “to detect, track and intercept aerodynamic and ballistic targets”.
The military did not say when the strike had taken place or give the venue of the ‘Nebo-M’ radar station in its statement on the Telegram messaging app.
“The destruction of the Nebo-M radar will create a favourable ‘air corridor’ for the effective use of Storm Shadow and SCALP-EG cruise missiles,” it said.
The Ukrainian military said it believed Russia had 10 such operational systems left, each estimated to be worth more than $100 million.
The United States sent long-range ATACMS missiles to Ukraine this spring and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Ukraine had committed at the time to only using the weapons inside its own territory. Russian forces currently occupy about 18% of Ukraine’s territory.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been pleading with allies for months to let Ukraine fire Western missiles, including long-range U.S. ATACMS and Britain’s Storm Shadow, deep into Russia.
After discussions with allies last month, and following a visit to the U.S. by Zelenskiy, Washington did not signal any change in its position on Kyiv’s use of the long-range weapons on Russian territory.
