LEMOUR, France (AP) — Ukraine’s defense minister said on Wednesday that sophisticated air defense radars supplied by France would save Ukrainian lives. The radar is powerful enough to detect incoming missiles and exploding drones over the Ukrainian capital. surrounding area.
Minister Oleksii Reznikov was so enthusiastic about what he called Ukraine’s new “electronic eye” that he soon nicknamed the Ground Master 200 radar “Grand Master”.
Speaking through an interpreter at the radar handover ceremony with the French, Reznikov said the French-made GM200 was a “very effective” upgrade to the Ukrainian network of about 300 different air defense radars.
Manufacturer Thales says the radar detects and tracks rockets, artillery shells, mortars, missiles, aircraft, drones and other threats.
“Thanks to your support, lives in Ukraine will be saved,” the minister said at a ceremony in Limur, where Thales manufactures the equipment.
“This radar will be the cherry on the cake,” he added. “That’s why I’m going to call you ‘Grandmaster’.”
French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecorne said the GM200’s range of 250 kilometers (155 miles) would allow it to monitor the skies above Kyiv and the region surrounding the Ukrainian capital, but did the Ukrainian military intend to do so? It is unclear whether Expand it.
The radar can be transported by truck. Thales says it can be deployed in 15 minutes and moved to another location in 10 minutes, making it difficult to attack.
At the ceremony, the minister was presented with a small model of radar and waved it over his head with a big smile.
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