What can we learn from the Russian anti-ship missile strike on ground targets in Ukraine?

The image shows the wreckage of a missile in Ukraine believed to be an SSC-1B Sepal (above), compared with an image of a P-35 missile (Photo: Defense.ua).

Photos of missile debris began appearing on social media on January 18th. According to unconfirmed information, the missile in the photo was shot down by Ukrainian air defenses.

Social media groups are divided on the variant of the missile in the photo, which could be a P-35, P-35B, or 3M44, according to the Russian naming convention. According to War Zone , all three models are related, have similar shapes, and are collectively known in the West as the SSC-1B Sepal.

The P-35B anti-ship missile began to be used for coastal defense in the early 1960s, with an effective range of over 430 km. Equipped with a jet engine and two solid-fuel booster rockets during launch, the P-35B weighs approximately 4.6 tons and is about 10 meters long.

In the early 1980s, the P-35B coastal defense missile was replaced by the 3M44, with a reported effective range of over 460 km. This variant could carry a nuclear warhead in addition to the optional 900 kg conventional warhead.

Until the end of 2020, these missiles were still being used to protect the strategic port of Sevastopol in the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia claims to have annexed since 2014.

It is currently unclear where in Ukraine and when the recent photograph of the missile wreckage was taken.

According to War Zone , the SSC-1B Sepal had never previously been spotted in the Ukraine conflict. Whatever the variant, this missile was identified as targeting land targets rather than ships, as Ukraine currently lacks large naval vessels.

Regardless of the missile's origin and variant, War Zone argues that the photograph of the debris is evidence that Russia is using non-standard missiles to strike ground targets.

This could be due to a shortage of ground-attack cruise missiles and specialized ballistic missiles, along with difficulties in producing new missiles under pressure from Western sanctions.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/thay-gi-tu-viec-ten-lua-chong-ham-nga-tap-kich-muc-tieu-mat-dat-o-ukraine-20240120231916798.htm