Mr Zelenskyy confirmed on Saturday (24 August 2024) the existence of Palianytsia, named after a sort of Ukrainian bread. | Picture credit score: Reuters/Ukrainian Presidential Press Sequence
Ukraine says it has a brand new home-made long-range weapon that may permit it to strike deep into Russia with out asking permission from its allies.
With the traits of each a missile and a drone, the “Palianytsia” was created out of pressing want, Ukrainian officers mentioned, as Russia has dominated the skies for the reason that outbreak of struggle in February 2022. On Monday (Aug. 26, 2024), a wave of Russian missiles and drones focused Ukraine’s electrical infrastructure within the largest such assault in weeks.
“Defenders of life should have no restrictions on weapons, so long as Russia makes use of all kinds of its personal weapons,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned in a Telegram message after the assaults.
On Saturday, August 24, 2024, Zelensky confirmed the existence of the Palianytsia, named after a sort of Ukrainian bread and a phrase so notoriously tough to pronounce appropriately that it was used to unmask spy suspects early within the struggle. The Ukrainian president referred to as it a “new form” of weapon.
Saturday (Aug. 24, 2024), marking the thirty third anniversary of Ukraine’s independence from the previous Soviet Union, additionally noticed the primary use of the brand new weapon, focusing on a Russian army facility within the occupied territory, the officers mentioned with out offering particulars.
A Ukrainian army video signifies that its vary is as much as 700 km, much like that of the US-supplied ATACMS. It reveals a map with a number of airfields, together with the Russian Savasleyka airbase, which is inside that vary, and provides that the Palianytsia can attain a minimum of 20 Russian airfields.
The US and different Western allies provide Ukraine with long-range weapons, however forestall it from launching them additional away from Russia for worry of escalating the struggle. Ukraine can assault border areas, however needs to push deeper into Russian territory to assault Russian army infrastructure.
The Institute for the Examine of Warfare mentioned Russia was “profiting from protected haven house in deep rear areas.” It estimated that a minimum of 250 militarily vital targets in Russia had been inside vary of ATACMS missiles, however present restrictions permit Ukraine to assault solely 20 of them.
Ukrainian Expertise Minister Mykhailo Fedorov mentioned The Related Press In his first interview in regards to the new weapon, he mentioned the subsequent step was to scale up manufacturing.
“I believe this will probably be a game-changer as a result of we can strike the place Russia doesn’t count on it in the present day,” he mentioned.
Fedorov declined to offer additional particulars on the scope or present provide, citing safety causes, however mentioned he has been concerned in home missile improvement tasks since late 2022.
Ukraine’s battlefields have change into a lethal testing floor for brand spanking new weapons and new variations of previous ones. Each Ukrainian and Russian forces have outfitted industrial gear with military-grade explosives and infrared cameras; Russia has retrofitted Soviet-era unguided bombs with GPS harnesses; and Ukraine’s underwater drones have crippled Russia’s Black Sea fleet.
However the brand new weapon is a long-term aim for Ukraine. One of many specialists concerned within the long-range missile venture mentioned it was “a totally new improvement, from scratch,” which started about 18 months in the past.
“This isn’t an extension of an previous Soviet venture,” mentioned the specialist, who spoke on situation of anonymity to guard the secrecy of the venture. “The missile has a solid-fuel booster that accelerates it, adopted by a jet engine,” he defined.
Ukraine says its failure to defend itself in opposition to long-range Russian weapons has deadly penalties. Ukraine’s commander-in-chief, Common Oleksandr Syrskyi, mentioned Russia has launched 9,627 long-range missiles and Ukrainian defenses shot down solely 1 / 4 of them, with greater than half of the Russian targets being civilians.
The specialist and Minister Fedorov famous that every missile prices lower than one million {dollars} and that the army is popping to the personal sector to additional cut back manufacturing prices. “The personal market generates options extremely shortly,” the minister mentioned.
“Since this 12 months, personal firms have change into the primary suppliers of drones to the Ukrainian army, together with these now attacking inside Russia and submarines which have repeatedly attacked the Russian Black Sea Fleet,” Mr. Fedorov mentioned.
“There will probably be all types of missiles in Ukraine,” he mentioned. “If we now have our personal weapons, we are going to really feel extra unbiased and assured.”
Mr Fedorov added that he believed Russia’s sheer measurement is also its vulnerability.
“It’s unattainable to provide sufficient air protection techniques to guard such a big territory,” he mentioned. “For us, this opens up the potential of working deep behind enemy strains.”
