Contrary to Putin's threats, the British deliver long-range rocket launchers to Kyiv

After the USA, Great Britain also agrees to supply modern multiple rocket launchers.

Contrary to Putin's threats, the British deliver long-range rocket launchers to Kyiv

After the USA, Great Britain also agrees to supply modern multiple rocket launchers. London wants to take over the training. British support would only have to change if Russia's tactics changed, said Defense Minister Ben Wallace on the new arms delivery.

Despite warnings from Russia's head of state Vladimir Putin, Great Britain also wants to support Ukraine with the delivery of long-range missile systems. The Ministry of Defense in London announced that the delivery of the US-made multiple rocket launcher artillery system (MLRS) to Ukraine was closely coordinated with the government in Washington.

The British Ministry of Defense emphasized that the planned delivery of the M270 multiple rocket launchers means "a significant boost to the capabilities of the Ukrainian army". The weapon system can hit targets up to 80 kilometers away with precision-guided missiles. Great Britain also wants to train Ukrainian soldiers in the use of the new weapon system.

The United States announced last week that it would deliver its HIMARS mobile artillery missile system to Ukraine, which can launch several precision-guided missiles at the same time and surpasses previous Ukrainian weapon systems in terms of range and precision. According to military experts, its range of up to 80 kilometers is slightly greater than that of similar Russian systems, allowing Kiev forces to hit enemy artillery without getting within range. However, US President Joe Biden had rejected the delivery of missile systems with an even longer range, despite corresponding demands from Kyiv.

Kremlin boss Putin warned that Western arms deliveries generally only lead to the conflict in Ukraine being drawn out. On Sunday, Putin issued a warning to Western states not to supply long-range missiles to Ukraine. Otherwise, "we will draw the appropriate conclusions and use our weapons (...) to hit objects that we have not hit so far," he said, according to Russian news agencies. He therefore did not provide any more detailed information on potential targets.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace nevertheless spoke out in favor of further arms deliveries to Ukraine so that it could "win" the war against Russia. "The UK stands with Ukraine in this fight and is taking the lead in providing her heroic troops with the critical weapons they need to defend their country against an unprovoked invasion," Wallace said. "If Russia's tactics change, our support for Ukraine must change as well," added the UK defense secretary. The promised high-performance multiple rocket launchers should improve the protection of Ukrainians "against the brutal use of long-range artillery that Putin's troops have used indiscriminately to flatten cities".

The British government has so far pledged £750 million (€874 million) in military aid to Ukraine. The aid includes, among other things, the delivery of air defense systems, thousands of anti-tank missiles and hundreds of armored vehicles.