JAKARTA - If nothing goes wrong, Ukraine will soon receive a new long-range bomb in the near future and use it on the battlefield, a well-known manufacturer-made weapon that even the United States does not have.
Two US officials and two others familiar with this said the Pentagon had successfully tested a new long-range precision bomb for Ukraine.
Ukraine will receive the first wave of Ground-Launched Small Dialmeter Bombs (GLSDB), a new long-range weapon made by Boeing, not even the US has in its inventory, according to the four people, all of whom were not named.
The new bomb, which can cover a distance of about 90 miles, is expected to be a "significant capability for Ukraine," said one US official.
"This gives them deeper attack capabilities they have never had, and completes their long-range gunfire," US officials said, quoted by Politico on February 1.
"It's just an additional arrow at the place of the arrows that will allow them to do more," he continued.
Meanwhile, an Army spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pentagon spokesman Major General PatRIDer declined to comment on the timing "due to operational security."
"I will refer to Ukraine to discuss any shipments," he told reporters.
"But we, as I mentioned, continue to work closely with Ukraine and our industrial partners to ensure that Ukraine accepts and is ready to use the capabilities we provide them and as quickly as possible," he explained.
The weapons, jointly developed by Boeing and Saab, consist of 250-pound precision-guided bombs placed on rocket motors and fired from various land launchers.
The US military has a similar version of the bomb launched from the air. However, the version launched from the ground is not yet in the military inventory of Uncle Sam's country.
The extended reach will provide new capabilities in Kyiv's arsenal, at a time when frontline fighting is deadlocked, and as Ukraine seeks new ways to attack Russian troops and infrastructure behind the front lines.
The bomb will join other long-range weapons given to Ukraine over the past year, allowing its forces to attack Russian logistics and naval locations in Crimea.
Although these new bombs have no reach like the British Storm Shadow or the US-made Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), these new bombs arrived as Ukraine's artillery and ammunition supplies were running low.
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Earlier, the Pentagon announced in February last year that President Joe Biden's Administration provided a new bomb to Ukraine. But before sending a new version, the US military needed to test the weapon and it took months.
The US military oversaw the test of the new precision guided bomb, before stamping approval for sending the weapon to Ukraine, according to industry sources.
It is known that the version launched by air was made in 2019, but even though the testing was successful, Boeing and Saab did not make sales until the US decided to donate it to Ukraine as part of the aid package.
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