Nicolas Tonev, edited by Gauthier Delomez
modified to
07:42, November 21, 2022
The war in Ukraine highlights the importance of sending missiles into the field, which are accompanied by brutal detonations. The two countries make the acquisition of these machines an absolute priority because they have become synonymous with control of the theater of operations, even if they pose two major problems.
In the context of the war in Ukraine, never have so many missiles been used between protagonists since the last massive wars in Vietnam or Iran-Iraq. Russia and Ukraine, two countries equipped with heavy and modern armaments, make the possession and acquisition of these devices an absolute priority because the brutal detonations that can be heard on the ground have become synonymous with mastery of the theater of operations on one side or the other.
Russia is now launching waves of missiles at its targets to saturate Ukraine’s anti-missile defense systems. That is to say throw enough so that a good number arrives at the goal. For their part, the Ukrainians claim the destruction in flight of several dozen Russian machines since the beginning of the month.
The two issues of a missile war
This rocket war is, cynically, extremely effective in terms of the result in terms of destruction on the ground or air defense, but it also generates two major problems. First the costs, since each shot is very expensive. The smallest high-precision missile is worth at least several hundred thousand euros. A Russian salvo of 100 missiles is therefore at least 50 million euros volatilized.
The other issue is restocking. Indeed, the more technological a missile is, the longer it takes to produce it. The Russians get away with the gigantic stocks inherited from the Soviet Union. The Ukrainians are urging the Westerners to deliver as quickly as possible, even if it means forcing them to dip into stocks that will then have to be replenished.