Amid reports that Kyiv had postponed a long-anticipated spring counteroffensive while waiting for the arrival of additional Western weapons, the UK government said it had delivered long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine to assist in driving out Russia's occupying soldiers.
According to AP News, UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace announced the donation of Storm Shadow missiles in the House of Commons. These are long-range, conventionally-armed deep-strike weapons capable of striking targets more than 250 kilometers (150 miles) away.
The air-launched missiles would enable Ukrainian troops to strike targets well beyond the front lines, even in Russian-occupied Crimea. Ukrainian officials reportedly promised British media they would not deploy the missiles against Russia.
The missiles, according to Wallace, "are now going into or are in the country itself."
Ukraine Awaits More Weaponry
More than 14 months after the Kremlin's full-scale invasion and despite receiving missiles from the UK, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country's military still needs more time to prepare for an anticipated counteroffensive to push back Russian occupying forces.
In an interview with BBC on Thursday, May 11, Zelenskyy said it would be unacceptable to initiate the attack now since too many lives would be lost.
He acknowledges that they can push ahead and win with the weaponry they have but that they will suffer heavy casualties. "So we need to wait. We still need a bit more time," Zelenskyy stated. He added that not all of the necessary equipment had arrived.
For weeks, predictions have been made that Ukraine would mount a counterattack to Russia's invasion. Ukraine is getting Western training and modern weaponry for its forces as it lines up for an anticipated attack.
Following the delivery of other cutting-edge Western weaponry to the Ukrainian military, including tanks and long-range precision artillery, this move by the UK is a welcome boost for the nation.
To put them off the trail?
As the weather in Ukraine improves, a counterattack may be launched, although no official word on this has been issued as of yet. Ammunition supply problems on both sides have contributed to the mystery surrounding Zelenskyy's comments, which may have been intended to throw off the Russians.
In a report by AP News, it was speculated that the counteroffensive had already begun after the Ukrainian military claimed that its troops had advanced up to 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) around the disputed eastern city of Bakhmut.
The combat and forward advance, according to Serhii Cherevatyi, spokesperson for Ukraine's Operational Command East, is reportedly not the major counteroffensive but rather a precursor suggesting that more similar assaults would be forthcoming.
In contrast, the leader of Russia's private military group Wagner, who has been at the forefront of Moscow's attack on Bakhmut, stated that the Ukrainian counteroffensive was "in full swing," with Ukrainian soldiers advancing on the flanks around Bakhmut.
