Pentagon has already developed plans to sell or transfer Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine - NYT
The US Department of Defense has developed plans to sell or transfer long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles in case US President Donald Trump gives the appropriate order.
This is reported by The New York Times, Censor.NET reports.
Thus, after the conclusion of negotiations on a peace agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza, Trump on October 14 suggested that he might allow the sale of US Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, which would give Kiev the opportunity to strike deep into Russian territory.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, amid these discussions, stated that such a sale would mean a "qualitatively new stage of escalation."
Trump's threats to provide missiles to Ukraine — regardless of whether he carries them out or not — are a sign of his growing frustration with Putin, who refuses to yield or compromise, despite the US leader's high-profile diplomatic attempts, the publication notes.
"The Defense Department has developed plans to sell or transfer the Tomahawks in case Trump gives the order. But providing the weapons would be fraught with enormous problems, not least because Ukraine does not have the sea- or land-based launchers needed to launch the missiles," the article says.
To launch the Tomahawks, Ukraine would need a U.S. Army launcher called the Typhon, which military officials say would bring the United States closer to a direct confrontation with Russia. It is unclear how many Tomahawks the United States could provide, how Ukraine could safely store them, and what impact a limited number of missiles would have.
There are also real concerns about escalating tensions with Russia, highlighted by the Kremlin’s recent warnings to Washington not to provide Ukraine with long-range weapons.
