EditVance eyes Tomahawk missiles for Ukraine as Russia loses interest in peace talks
This weapon can target government facilities in Moscow or St. Petersburg, well within the 2,500 km radius from Ukraine’s borders
The United States is considering Ukraine’s request to obtain long-range Tomahawk missiles for its effort to push back against Russian invaders, Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday (28 September).
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked the United States to sell Tomahawks to European nations that would send them to Ukraine. Vance said on “Fox News Sunday” that U.S. President Donald Trump would make the “final determination” on whether to allow the deal.
“We’re certainly looking at a number of requests from the Europeans,” Vance said.
Tomahawk missiles have a range of 2,500 km and would extend Ukraine’s capacity to strike far beyond current capabilities, such as U.S.-provided ATACMS (300 km range) or UK/French-supplied Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles (250–560 km). This could allow strikes on Russian military bases, supply lines, or even symbolic targets like government facilities in Moscow or St. Petersburg, well within the 2,500 km radius from Ukraine’s borders.
The potential transfer of U.S.-made Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine would represent a significant escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, risking to provoke a severe Russian response and even heightened nuclear risks.
Trump has denied Ukraine’s requests for use of long-range missiles in the past but has grown frustrated at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to reach a peace deal.
“We remain committed to peace, but it requires the will of both sides. Unfortunately, over the past few weeks, we have seen the Russians refuse to participate in any bilateral meetings with the Ukrainians,” he said. He extended this to trilateral formats, noting, “They have also declined any trilateral meetings where the president or another administration official could join the Russians and Ukrainians at the negotiating table.
“Attributing the impasse to “changing realities on the ground,” Vance pointed to Russia’s heavy losses – estimated at over 600,000 personnel since the invasion began – with minimal territorial gains since May 2025. “The Russians have got to wake up and accept reality here. A lot of people are dying. They don’t have a lot to show for it,” he urged, questioning how many more lives Moscow is willing to sacrifice for “very small – if any- military advantage.”
Vance’s interview aired mere hours before Russia unleashed what Ukrainian officials described as one of the largest aerial assaults of the war, targeting Kyiv and multiple regions in a barrage lasting over 12 hours.
Russia pounds Kyiv, other regions in mass drone and missile attack
The attack involved nearly 600 drones and dozens of missiles, killing at least four people in Kyiv – including a 12-year-old girl – and injuring dozens more across the country. In Kyiv alone, 42 people were wounded, with strikes damaging residential buildings, a medical facility, a kindergarten, and over 20 civilian sites. Fires raged in suburbs, shattering windows and flattening parked cars, while debris from intercepted drones littered streets.
The assault extended beyond the capital: In Zaporizhzhia, 38 people were injured and 14 apartment buildings hit; other regions like Sumy, Odesa, and Kharkiv reported strikes on infrastructure. Ukraine’s air defenses, already stretched thin, intercepted many threats, but the scale overwhelmed response efforts.
Europe is experiencing an unprecedented wave of drone incursions, with incidents ranging from massive Russian drone swarms breaching Polish and Romanian airspace to coordinated attacks shutting down Danish and Norwegian airports, prompting NATO to bolster defences and the EU to advance plans for a “drone wall” along its eastern flank.
Zelenskyy said Russia aims to erode aid to Ukraine by sowing doubt: “Russia is testing Europe’s ability to defend itself and trying to influence societies so that people start thinking: ‘Why are we giving so much to Ukrainians, but we can’t protect ourselves?’”
With Reuters, edited by g.g.
Caption: US Vice President JD Vance photographed in the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 22 August 2025. EPA/ANNABELLE GORDON / POOL
Updated: September 29, 2025 - 07:01
