UK boosts Ukraine support with high-tech missile system

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The British government said Monday that the multiple-launch rocket systems it is offering to Ukraine will bring “a significant boost in capability” for the country's efforts to resist Russia's invasion, which loomed large over D-Day commemorations in northern France.

“If the international community continues its support, I believe Ukraine can win” its war against Russia, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement.

The statement came after comments Sunday by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who warned the West against sending longer-range rocket systems to Ukraine, where the war was in its 103rd day.

The British government described the M270 weapon system as a “cutting edge” military asset which can strike targets up to 80 kilometers (50 miles) away “with pinpoint accuracy.” The system is manned by three gunners and is mounted on an armored launcher with tracks.

The United Kingdom pledged last week to send the weapons. It gave no details about delivery dates.

The U.S. last week announced plans to deliver $700 million of security assistance for Ukraine, including four precision-guided, medium-range rocket systems, as well as helicopters, Javelin anti-tank systems, radars, tactical vehicles and more.

Washington and London hope the deliveries will help Ukraine turn the tide of the war in its eastern Donbas region which Russia appears minded to capture entirely.

They are unlikely to have an immediate impact, however. The Pentagon said last week that it will take at least three weeks to get the U.S. weapons onto the battlefield. Russia-backed separatists have fought the Ukrainian government since 2014 in the Donbas.

The U.S. has stopped short of offering Ukraine longer-range weapons — those with a range of up to 300 kilometers (186...