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The successful hit on the petroleum products plant in the Rostov region of the Russian Federation the day before was carried out by a French SCALP missile with a range of up to 300 km, fired from a Ukrainian SU-24 aircraft.
This was stated by French military expert and aeronautics specialist Xavier Tytelman, who studied the images of the wreckage. He provided details in a comment to an Ukrinform correspondent.
“As far as I know, this is the first time a French missile of this type has been used. We have images that confirm this, and we know one specific type of such missile – SCALP, with a range of 300 km, fired from Ukrainian Su-24 fighters,” the expert said.
According to him, this time there is evidence, because in previous cases, when North Korean troops were attacked and 6 to 8 missiles were fired, it was not known exactly what kind of missiles were used.
“At the time, we didn’t know exactly what it was, because it’s very hard to tell the difference between the British Storm Shadow and the French Scalp,” he explained.
This time, Tytelman examined the video of the wreckage and identified the inscriptions on it.
“300 kilometers is the maximum distance we can deliver to Ukraine in compliance with international standards. We have carefully studied the map and also checked the images of the wreckage. These are identifiable pieces of debris with stickers that are typical of French equipment,” he explained.
The expert also called the strike symbolic, as Rostov is an important city for the Russian military command, from where it controls the entire Ukrainian front.
“It is certainly symbolic because it is the main city in the region, which is intensively defended by Russian air defense,” Tytelman added.
In his opinion, the French authorities hold the position that Ukrainians can use the weapons they have been provided with as they see fit to defend their territory.
“It’s like when we sell the same weapon to Egypt or another country or the Emirates, we are not going to stand behind their backs to find out how they configure it. They are free to use their weapons as they see fit to maximize their military effectiveness. We are also not going to systematically check targets,” the military expert explained.
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