Is THIS the US missile that will force Putin to make peace? JASSM cruise missile could obliterate 30 key Russian bases

The Sun

6 days ago

DONALD Trump could send Ukraine a set of incredibly powerful cruise missiles to help scare Vladimir Putin into agreeing to a peace deal.
The US President sent the Russian despot a major warning on Monday urging Vlad to negotiate with Ukraine or face serious repercussions.
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A raging Trump also announced he has agreed to send "top of the line weapons" used by the US over to Nato so they can deploy them in Kyiv.
It has also been revealed that Trump reportedly asked Volodymyr Zelensky whether Kyiv could strike Russia's two biggest cities with US firepower.
But Putin's propagandist warned that Trump's missile threats will only force Russia to "turn Kyiv and Lviv into Hiroshima and Nagasaki".
Trump vowed to send weapons compromising of "everything" in his arsenal in order to get Putin back into line after weeks of the tyrant incessantly bombing Ukraine.
One of the proposed weapons which could be included in the package deal is America's joint air-to-surface standoff cruise missiles (JASSM).
President Trump is said to be considering supplying the rarely used Lockheed Martin devices to help Ukraine, according to defence news website Military Watch.
The standard AGM-15 JASSM has an impressive range of up to 230 miles and is armed with a 450kg warhead.
They are also known for their excellent radar-evading capabilities as they can fly at low altitudes.
And Kyiv already boasts the ideal aircraft to carry and deploy the cruise missiles with their fleet of F-16 fighter jets.
The US President even has past experience using the powerful weapons as they were deployed by US fighter jets in the assassination of Abu Bakr-al Baghdadi, the leader of Isis, back in 2019.
Ukraine repels Russian onslaught as Putin continues to launch deadly air strikes on military targets
The JASSM would be seen a major escalation in US support for Ukraine with Kyiv only having one other air-launched cruise missile in its arsenal.
The Anglo-French Stormshadow is a key component for the Ukrainian military but it has a range of 155 miles - 75 miles less than what Trump can offer.
Due to the range of the JASSMs, it mean that Ukraine could strike at least 30 Russian airbases from the Ukrainian border.
The cruise missiles would also act as a useful tool as Ukrainian pilots could take much more of a risk by flying into Russian airspace and getting closer to the enemy.
Volodymyr Zelensky would be likely to use the huge warheads to cause extensive damage to Russian ammunition dumps and specialist commands HQs across Russia.
This would allow them to slow down any upcoming Russian advances.
The JASSM first entered service in 2003 and is still regarded as a top level weapon.
Just four countries across the globe actually possess them currently - including the US and Poland.
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It comes as the world continues to wait to see which weapons the US will send across to their Nato allies in the coming weeks.
Trump met Nato chief Mark Rutte in the White House on Monday alongside Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as he announced the deal.
President Trump said: "We've made a deal today where we are going to be sending them weapons, and they're going to be paying for them.
"This is billions of dollars worth of military equipment which is going to be purchased from the United States... going to Nato, and that's going to be quickly distributed to the battlefield."
Surface-to-air Patriot missile systems and batteries are said to be among the equipment being sent.
A furious Trump also said he is 'very unhappy' with Russia as he warned of 100 per cent secondary tariffs on Moscow should they continue to attack Ukraine.
The President has spent the first seven months of his White House return urging both sides to come to the negotiating table.
But a snarling Putin has always declined and instead ramped up his ground and aerial offensives across Ukraine.
Trump's direct put down of Russia's tyrant is among his strictest warnings to date.
Nato boss Rutte praised Trump's move as a game changer.
by Sayan Bose, Foreign News Reporter
DONALD Trump sending long-range weapons to Ukraine could be a game-changer for the war by helping halt Vladimir Putin's nightly blitzes, experts said.
Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a decorated British Army commander, said the shipment of these long-range missiles would have profound "psychological and physical effects" on Ukraine.
Mr de Bretton-Gordon told The Sun: "These weapons can strike Moscow - over 400 miles from the border. That allows the Ukrainians to strike drone factory production and ammunition sites, and others.
"So this will have both psychological as well as physical effects.
"People in Moscow will realise that they potentially could be targeted.
"And when you also add to it the American bombings on Iranian sites that were supposed to be impregnable, it shows that American missile and drone technology rather superior to the Russian air defence system."
The former army chief said these weapons will put real pressure on Russia, adding: "The metric has now changed and Trump's decision could make a huge difference."
Ex-military intelligence officer Colonel Philip Ingram told The Sun how these long-range weapons could help strike Russian missile and drone launchpads - the ones that are used to launch nightly attacks on Ukraine.
He said: "The Ukrainians are already attacking to hit Russian military logistics, defence industry bases.
"And with these sophisticated weapons, they will have increased capability of doing so.
"It will impact the ability of the Russians to prosecute these increasingly large drone and rocket attacks on a nightly basis.
"And then that's the best way for the Ukrainians to stop it."
He said it would allow Ukraine to access "really massive numbers of military equipment" for air defence, missiles and ammunition.
Rutte said the plan means Ukraine will finally be able to maintain its defences against Russia, with European allies footing the bill – something Trump called 'totally logical.'
Trump praised Ukraine for showing "tremendous courage' but warned they are losing equipment fast.
It comes as Russia continues to pound Ukrainian cities with missiles and drones on a nearly-nightly basis.
Frustration has been mounting in recent weeks, particularly following a July 3 phone call with Putin, in which the Kremlin tyrant reportedly told Trump he planned to escalate operations to seize full control of occupied Ukrainian territories within 60 days.
"He wants to take all of it," Trump told French President Emmanuel Macron shortly afterwards, according to a source cited by Axios.
That phone call was reportedly a turning point.
In the days that followed, Trump intervened to restart US weapons deliveries that had been paused by the Pentagon and vegan crafting a weapons package that appears to include long-range missiles.
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