The Pentagon has successfully tested a new GLSDB long-range precision-guided bomb, which is expected to arrive in Ukraine on Wednesday. Politico writes about this with reference to a US official and three other people familiar with the negotiations, UNN reports.
According to the publication, Ukraine will receive its first batch of small-diameter ground bombs, a brand new long-range weapon manufactured by Boeing that even the United States does not have.
The new bomb, which can fly about 90 miles, is expected to be a "significant potential for Ukraine," said one U.S. official.
"It gives them a deeper strike capability that they didn't have, it adds to their long-range firepower," the U.S. official said.
An army spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment, adds Politico.
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The weapon, jointly developed by Boeing and Saab, consists of a precision 250-pound bomb attached to a rocket engine and fired from various ground launchers. The U.S. military has a similar version of the air-launched bomb, but no ground-based version is yet in the U.S. arsenal.
The publication adds that the extended range will provide new opportunities for Kyiv's arsenal at a time when the fighting at the front has reached a stalemate and when Ukraine is looking for new ways to hit Russian forces and infrastructure behind the front line.
Last February, the Pentagon announced that the Biden administration was providing Ukraine with a new bomb. But before sending the new version, the US military needed to test the weapon, and this took many months.
According to an industry source, the army controlled the testing of the new precision bomb before authorizing the shipment of the weapon to Ukraine.