 |
| Ukraine Uses Harpoon Anti-Ship Missile System to Fight Russia |
International Military - Russia's invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, 2022. Since then, Ukraine has received various assistance in the form of weapons from other countries. Most recently, Ukraine has received assistance with the Harpoon anti-ship missile system from Denmark.
Quoted from The Defense Post, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov at the weekend said his military had fielded Harpoon anti-ship missiles to strengthen its coastal defenses. The Ukrainian military previously relied solely on domestically produced Neptune anti-ship missiles.
Neptune is a soviet era system that is reported as a copy of the Harpoon made in the United States (US). Reznikov later said the Harpoons had succeeded in forcing the enemy fleet to keep their distance. Our shore defenses are reinforced by the highly effective Harpoon complex.
Quoted from Forbes, it is stated that Harpoon has been kept since 2002. The Danish government sent Harpoon to Kyiv after it held a virtual meeting with the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group.
The United States Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin has conveyed this matter some time ago. "I am very grateful to Denmark, which announced it would provide Harpoon and missile launchers to assist Ukraine in defending its coast," Austin said.
Reportedly, the Danish Harpoon has an extraordinary and sophisticated advantage. It is known that the range can be up to 187 miles (200 kilometers) to strike a target. The Harpoon is capable of striking both sea and land-based targets, so it can be utilized in different conditions.
Read Also: About the Russia-Ukraine Invasion, Amnesty International Accuses Russia of War Crimes in Kharkiv
With the addition of the Harpoon, it will certainly help Ukraine in pushing the Russian Black Sea fleet back from Ukrainian ports. It was previously reported by Rezkinov that the Polish AHS Krab self-propelled artillery unit had indeed been deployed.
Rezkinov explained that the results of the various weapons were not satisfactory, so they urgently needed the help of other additional weapons. "I can't say I'm satisfied with the tempo and quantity of the weapons supply, absolutely not," he said
However, he still emphasized that he was very grateful to the countries that had provided such support and assistance. The expression of gratitude was also conveyed specifically to the US, UK, Poland, and the Baltic countries.
Read Also: Russian-Ukrainian War 109th Day, Zelensky Claims 40,000 Russian Soldiers Killed