President Joe Biden’s administration is reportedly maneuvering to send more advanced anti-ship missiles to Ukraine to help the former Soviet republic break a Russian naval blockade of its Black Sea ports.
The missiles in question are the Harpoon, made by Boeing, and the Naval Strike Missile (NSM), made by Kongsberg and Raytheon Technologies, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing three unidentified administration officials and two congressional sources. Talks are active on whether to ship the missiles directly to Kiev or to transfer them through a European ally.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been lobbying since at least April for his Western backers to provide Harpoons or other missiles with similar capabilities. However, as Reuters noted, countries have avoided being the first nation or the only nation providing such weaponry to Kiev, “fearing Russian reprisals if a ship is sunk with a Harpoon from their stockpile.”