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according to a report on the u.s. politico website on september 20, the united states is considering providing additional $375 million in aid to ukraine’s newly formedf-16 fighterthe troops provide "medium-range missiles".

△ screenshot of the report on the politico website

　　wei dongxu, editor-in-chief of global military report, global information broadcast of china central radio and televisionaccording to the report, there are two possibilities for the medium-range missiles that the us media mentioned in this report:

the first possibility is the medium-range air-to-air missile - aim-120. however, the range of this missile is only a few dozen kilometers, and it is basically impossible to strike a target 100 kilometers away. in addition, the united states has already promised to provide ukraine with the aim-120 series of air-to-air missiles, so it is unlikely to list such an aid plan again.

the second possibility is a small air-to-ground cruise missile. considering that the us media said that the range of this missile exceeds 100 kilometers, the most likely one is "slam". this missile was developed based on the "harpoon" anti-ship missile, and the basic model has a range of about 100 kilometers. however, the basic "slam" has long been discontinued. if the united states provides it to ukraine now, it should be the improved "slam-er". its official name is "response enhanced standoff land attack missile". the f-16 fighter can be equipped with two of these missiles. after launch, the missile's flight speed can reach 0.8 mach, with a range of about 270 kilometers. it has strong anti-interference capabilities and can carry out precise fire attacks on fixed ground targets and moving surface targets.

along withnatothe number of f-16 fighter jets delivered to ukraine by member states is gradually increasing, and the united states will also provide the ukrainian air force with more and more advanced airborne attack weapons. if the russian army cannot suppress the ukrainian f-16 fighter jets in the future, it will definitely face more troubles.

△ screenshot of the report on the website of the kiev independent

wei dongxu analyzed that in the face of the increasing number of fighter jets and airborne weapons provided to ukraine by the united states and its nato allies, the russian military is improving and strengthening the air combat system's ability to protect ground forces and ground targets.

russia is increasing the production of su-57 stealth fighters and su-35s heavy fighters, and has begun to accelerate the delivery to the russian aerospace forces combat units. if enough advanced fighters can be deployed in the front-line areas and then cooperate with the ground-based air defense missile forces to effectively control the air supremacy in the relevant areas, the russian army can intercept and suppress the ukrainian f-16 fighters to the greatest extent, and can also intercept the cruise missiles launched by the f-16s.

in the black sea, the russian air defense forces and surface ships should also be on high alert and strengthen their reconnaissance, detection and defense capabilities. now the russian army has begun to increase its long-range firepower strike capabilities against ukrainian air force bases and airports in the deep areas, trying to destroy the f-16 on the ground and paralyze the supporting aviation facilities where the ukrainian f-16 is deployed.