As Russian armored divisions are snailing toward Kyiv in an imposing 40-mile-long convoy, many are wondering why has it been spared an assault by local Ukrainian forces over the last few days.
The Russians have surely taken into account that this seemingly interminable armored cavalcade could be spotted with ease from the air, but this does not help to allay the anxiety felt across the Ukrainian capital as it continues creeping ever closer.
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Satellite images of Russian convoy
(Photo: EPA/SATELLITE IMAGE 2022 MAXAR TECHNOLOGIES)
Ukraine has probably refrained from attacking the convoy so far due to deterrence or limited offensive capabilities.
However, there might be an effective solution to the slowly approaching threat right over Ukraine's borders, but one that is not within the immediate reach of the troops trying to fend off the invasion.
Were talking about the Spike missile which was developed by Israel's state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems in the 1980s to help the IDF stop similar convoys of Syrian tanks which have incurred heavy losses to Israel in the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
This gave birth to the Tamuz missile which has been proven deadly efficient in ranges of dozens of miles. It served the Israeli Artillery Corps before being sold to countless foreign armies throughout the years, including 19 NATO member states such as Poland and Estonia and other countries that share a border with Russia.
Over the last two decades, Israel has sold close to 50,000 long- and short-range Spike missiles to NATO forces which have based their entire anti-tank arsenal almost exclusively on Israeli-made technology.
Some NATO member states have pledged to provide military aid to Ukraine in the form of weapon systems, but the Israeli system is highly unlikely to end up making the trip to the Ukrainian frontlines since the procurement contract signed between the Israeli defense establishment and European armies stipulates that the system cannot be handed to a non-NATO army unless Israel consents to such a move.
IDF Tammuz missiles in action
(Video: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems )
The fact that Jerusalem preferred taking a cautious approach on the matter, only issuing a tepid condemnation of the Russian invasion and sending over to Ukraine humanitarian aid as opposed to protective equipment such as helmets and ballistic vests, indicates that Israel will not allow NATO countries to transfer the missiles to be used against Russian tanks.
NATO forces hold several thousand Tamuz missiles, which are particularly efficient in stopping armored convoys from great distance without splurging large sums of money on expensive aerial assaults, which also put Ukrainian fighter jets at great danger now that the Russians have practically paralyzed Kyiv's radar systems.
The Israeli system could land a haymaker on the Russian convoy. An artillery battalion armed with 16 Tammuz missile launchers and operated by two companies alongside a dedicated intelligence unit could decimate a target with a high heat signature such as a column of armored vehicles from 30 kilometers (19 miles) away.
Basic and effective training for the Israeli short-range Gil missiles can be completed within a week, but training for operating long-range Tammuz missiles could take weeks.
Meanwhile, so long Israel withholds the weapon systems, NATO has transferred to Ukraine other effective artillery ammunition such as the U.S.-made short-range FGM-148 Javelin missiles.