Biden ‘open’ to sending long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine

The Biden administration is “open” to sending long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine, a move that would give Kyiv’s F-16s greater combat punch as it seeks to gain further momentum in its fight against Russia.

The White House’s willingness to give Ukraine the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile comes as Kyiv’s surprisingly successful ground assault deep inside Russia heads into its second week, embarrassing Vladimir Putin and forcing him to redirect troops from the battlefield in Ukraine.

No final decision has been made on sending the missile, but the administration is working through the complicated details now, according to one Biden administration official. Those issues include reviews of the transfer of sensitive technologies, and ensuring Ukraine’s jets can launch the 2,400-pound missile that carries a 1,000-pound warhead.

The official, along with two other people familiar with internal deliberations, was granted anonymity to discuss sensitive issues.

The Pentagon declined to comment on whether it had approved the transfer of the missile.

“We consider a range of options to meet Ukraine’s security assistance requirements, however we have no information to provide,” said Pentagon spokesperson Jeff Jurgensen.

The debate surrounding the JASSM and the Biden administration’s willingness to explore its transfer makes the missile the latest in a long line of sophisticated weaponry once considered off-limits for transfer to Ukraine.

Some members of Congress and political opponents have accused the Biden administration of moving too slowly to give Kyiv the equipment it needs to win the war. Yet for a conflict that is just 30 months old, the approvals of F-16s, Abrams tanks, cruise missiles, Patriot air defenses and modern infantry carriers have transformed what was a Soviet-era military into one of Europe’s battlefield powerhouses.

The potential move comes in the waning months of President Joe Biden’s tenure, after which the level of U.S. support for Ukraine becomes less clear if former President Donald Trump retakes the White House.

The air-launched missiles would give the Ukrainian air force a capability only a handful of other nations have: launching a cruise missile over 200 miles from a U.S.-made fourth-generation fighter plane.

While talks continue inside the White House and Pentagon, the administration official warned that there is plenty of work to do before any missiles actually make their way to Ukraine, including making sure that Kyiv’s existing Soviet-era planes and its freshly delivered F-16s can launch the missile at targets over 230 miles away.

The Pentagon is already working with Ukraine on those technical issues, two of the people said.

The JASSM, developed by Lockheed Martin and first fielded in the early 2000s, has been used by the U.S. sparingly in combat and has been shared with only a handful of close allies.

Ukraine already possesses both air and ground-launched missiles provided by the U.S., U.K. and France that can reach almost 200 miles from their launch point, but restrictions on the missiles’ use inside Russia are for now staying in place.

The limitations, which stipulate that Ukraine can’t use U.S.-supplied weapons inside Russia unless it’s just over the border and for self-defense only, have frustrated Kyiv, which has repeatedly asked for a freer hand to strike Russian forces inside their country. It may be too late anyway for Ukraine to use its existing missiles to strike Russian aircraft at their bases, as the Russian military moved their fighters beyond the range of those missiles in May, according to the administration official.

As Ukraine pleads for the U.S. to relax its rules, Moscow has used its fighter planes flying safely inside Russia to launch glide bombs at Ukrainian cities, killing civilians.

Ukrainian parliamentarians and advisers to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have over the last several months pressed Biden officials and lawmakers on Capitol Hill to send the JASSM. That pressure grew when a cohort of Ukrainian parliamentarians visited Washington in July. Their request made its way to national security adviser Jake Sullivan, one of the people said.

Poland, Australia and Finland have the weapon, while Japan and the Netherlands signed agreements to buy the missiles in July with delivery expected in the coming years. Germany, Greece, Romania and Denmark are also in discussions to buy the missile.

Missile maker Lockheed Martin has delivered over 4,100 JASSMs in various configurations to the U.S. Air Force and allies over the years, with a new production line in Alabama churning out around 45 missiles a month to reach a stockpile goal of 7,200 missiles, according to Pentagon data.

The JASSMs would give Ukraine a significant boost in range, as the F-16s donated this summer by European countries are not expected to fly close to Russian lines for fear of being shot down.

The U.S. and allies have already committed to sending Ukraine a variety of air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions for its F-16s, but the JASSM deliveries would give Kyiv the most powerful and longest-range weapon in its air force’s arsenal.

A cadre of pro-Ukraine U.S. lawmakers has been pressing the administration to loosen restrictions on Kyiv’s ability to fire U.S.-supplied weapons into Russian territory. They argue that the U.S. should keep the momentum going after Ukrainian forces crossed the border into Russia on Aug. 6.

“Certainly we are pushing for additional weapon systems to be supplied to the Ukrainians because the Russian aerial reign of terror has reached a different order of magnitude — maybe several orders of magnitude greater than it was, with different kinds of missiles, glide bombs and drones,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who returned Tuesday night from Kyiv. Blumenthal declined to comment on any specific weapons under discussion.

The Pentagon has been receptive to the suggestion from Congress to supply the missiles because Russia has been successful at jamming some other American-made, precision-guided weapons.

Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. C.Q. Brown didn’t rule out sending the missiles when Ukraine Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) asked at a hearing in April whether the Defense Department was considering the action. How the F-16s would be armed would be part of DOD’s talks with Ukraine Defense Contact Group allies, Brown said.

“As we bring on the F-16s, it’s not only the airplanes, but the training of the pilots, the training of the maintainers — but also making sure we have the weapons to go with it,” Brown said. “That is the dialogue we’re having not only to get the airplanes but to get them to full capability.”