The UK Ministry of Defense has successfully completed the first tests of new long-range missile systems being developed to strengthen Ukraine's defense capabilities.
According to The Telegraph, the experimental weapon is capable of hitting targets at a distance of more than 300 miles (about 500 kilometers), potentially allowing the Ukrainian military to reach strategic targets in the Russian Federation, including Moscow.
The platforms were tested at a training ground in the Hebrides as part of a defense program called “Project Brakestop“. The new systems are equipped with a 250-kilogram warhead.
The UK Ministry of Defense has tasked developers with creating a strike weapon capable of reaching speeds of over 370 miles per hour (about 600 kilometers per hour) at a relatively low production cost - approximately 400,000 British pounds per unit. A key requirement of the project is the ability to produce at least 20 such systems per month.
At the initial stage in February last year, the agency considered 27 proposals from private companies, after which six companies received contracts worth approximately 5 million British pounds each to build prototypes. By the end of the year, three suppliers remained in the project, including MBDA UK, which produces the Storm Shadow cruise missile, and two small and medium-sized enterprises - MGI Engineering and Rotron Aerospace.
During the launches in the Hebrides, all systems worked smoothly, despite minor technical problems that the developers plan to fix in the next stages of testing.
The second phase of “Project Brakestop“ has already begun, with the companies receiving an additional 15 million British pounds for further technological improvements.
The London authorities expect to deliver the first completed systems to Kiev next year. According to the British Armed Forces Minister Louise Sander-Jones, these weapons should complement Ukraine's existing arsenal of long-range weapons, such as Storm Shadow missiles, but with a significant advantage in production costs.
The United Kingdom has officially approved a new military aid package for Ukraine worth a total of 752 million British pounds. British Defense Minister Dan Jarvis announced this at the beginning of a meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine's Defense in the “Ramstein“ format, which is being held at NATO headquarters. The funding will be used, in particular, to provide the Ukrainian side with 150,000 unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as 350 missiles and radars for air defense systems.
London is also working with its European partners to help Ukraine develop its own missile defense system, designed to become an alternative to the American “Patriot“ systems. According to The Telegraph, the need for this project is due to a shortage of PAC-3 interceptor missiles, the stocks of which are significantly depleted due to the escalating conflict in the Middle East. NATO is currently coordinating the development of this system, unofficially called “European Patriot“, which is expected to be significantly cheaper and suitable for mass industrial production.