U.S. Sending Anti-Radiation Missiles to Ukraine

The defense official didn’t say what missiles specifically, but this follows reports of AGM-88s being fired at Russian radars in Ukraine.
An AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM). USAF / SSGT. SCOTT STEWARTColin Kahl, U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, confirmed today that American authorities have transferred unspecified “anti-radiation missiles” to the Ukrainian armed forces that they can launch from at least some of their existing aircraft. Though Kahl did not say what type of missiles had been passed to the Ukrainians, his remarks follow the emergence of pictures on social media showing the apparent remains of an AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM) said to have been fired at a Russian position. You can read more about what we know already about the potential use of AGM-88s in Ukraine in this recent War Zone report.Anti-radiation missiles (ARMs) home in on enemy radio frequency emissions, primarily from radar arrays belonging to enemy air defense systems, and destroy or disable them.Kahl made his comments at a press briefing today where he announced a new U.S. military aid package for the Ukrainian armed forces, which could ultimately have a value of up to $1 billion. This particular aid package includes additional Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets for use in U.S.-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), unspecified munitions to go along with National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) American authorities are providing, additional Javelin anti-tank missiles, and more.It does not include any combat jets, something that has been a hot-button issue in Ukraine and the United States, and elsewhere, for months now. Kahl responded to questions about possible future transfers of aircraft to Ukraine, in part, by saying the following:Kahl did not name the missiles, but his remarks come right after the emergence of apparent evidence of the use of an AGM-88 missile in Ukraine, as The War Zone reported on in detail yesterday. The Undersecretary of Defense also specifically said that the missiles had been part of previous PDA packages. President Joe Biden can only exercise this so-called “drawdown authority,” which you can read more about here, to transfer items already in U.S. inventory. HARMs, including older models no longer in active service, would definitely be eligible for transfer to Ukraine through a drawdown authorized by President Biden. If the U.S. government has indeed transferred AGM-88s to Ukraine, and these are capable of being fired from some of the country’s existing aircraft as Kahl indicated, rather than some kind of ground-based launch …