(Dan Tri) – Experts point out the US’s tactical mistake when providing ATACMS missiles with an attack range of 165km to Ukraine.
ATACMS missile (Photo: Lockheed Martin).
According to Newsweek, expert Phillips P. O’Brien from St Andrews University (UK) commented that the US granting Ukraine long-range ATACMS missiles in recent times may be an ineffective move because the quantity is too small.
According to Mr. O’Brien, Ukraine `should have received enough missiles to destroy all the airports` in the area controlled by Moscow.
Previously, sources said that Ukraine received 20 ATACMS missiles with an attack range of 165km.
Ukraine announced that it had used ATACMS missiles to attack military airports in two Russian-controlled areas, destroying 9 enemy helicopters.
This is the first time since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out that the US decided to give Kiev long-range missiles.
Ukraine has reassured the US by pledging not to use long-range weapons to attack Russian territory.
ATACMS is an effective missile, but according to Mr. O’Brien, it was a mistake for the US to send Ukraine too few missiles, because this gave Russia time to react and adapt, as well as find a way to intercept it.
With a limited number of ATACMS, Ukraine must carefully calculate how to selectively attack Russian targets to ensure no weapons are wasted.
On October 25, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that air defense forces shot down two US-made ATACMS missiles during a military campaign in Ukraine.
Some military experts believe that the `trickle` of Western military aid to Ukraine could cause disadvantages for Kiev.
For example, Ukraine counterattacked for up to 4 months before US Abrams main battle tanks were delivered to this country.
Oleksiy Goncharenko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament, admitted that 31 tanks `could not make a difference`, although Kiev was grateful for the US support.
Marina Miron, a researcher at King’s College London (UK), added: `The number of Abrams is not enough to create a turning point in Ukraine.`
She said the number of vehicles is quite small, but Ukraine must create a new supply chain for ammunition and replacement parts, as well as ensure there are enough fuel tankers to support the tanks in operation.
`All this not only creates problems for the supply chain but also makes it an attractive target for Russian artillery and drones,` she warned.
Ukrainian officials admitted that they need more ATACMS missiles to deal with Russia.
`We need hundreds of such missiles,` he said, admitting that the `trickle` of US aid caused great difficulties for Ukraine.
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