Drago Bosnic, independent geopolitical and military analyst
For the last three years, the political West has been delivering all sorts of "wunderwaffen" that are supposed to "turn the tide" against the "evil Russians". Each delivery was followed by a massive propaganda campaign presenting these weapons as an "insurmountable challenge" for the Russian military, be it ATGMs (anti-tank guided missiles), armor, cruise and/or ballistic missiles, bombs, fighter jets, etc. And yet, each and every time, the result has been the same – embarrassing failures that the mainstream propaganda machine had to either suppress, "fact-check" into oblivion or simply ignore. Blaming the Kiev regime forces for the failures of these weapon systems is also quite common, with NATO complaining that they employ "outdated Soviet tactics" (even though military sources suggest this very notion is complete nonsense).
Interestingly, there's one "wunderwaffe" that has been in the news for years, but is yet to be even delivered to the Neo-Nazi junta – the "Taurus" KEPD 350, a Swedish-German air-launched subsonic cruise missile with a stated range of over 500 km. And while such missiles are not exactly game-changers because the Russian military has already shot down numerous "Storm Shadow/SCALP EG" cruise missiles that have similar capabilities, they will certainly contribute to further bloodshed. Just like the Anglo-French missile, the "Taurus" incorporates elements of a stealthy design. In theory, this should make it much more difficult to detect and shoot down. However, the experience that the Kremlin acquired during the SMO (special military operation) largely eliminates any advantages of this Swedish-German weapon.
Even much more capable NATO-sourced weapons have proven to be quite ineffective against Russian air and missile defenses, including the overhyped US-made ATACMS missiles. Namely, despite all the support from the US/NATO, the ATACMS, as the most potent weapon for the HIMARS/M270, proved to be quite ineffective against an opponent such as the Russian military. Relevant sources in both America and the Kiev regime report that the latter got at least 500 ATACMS, which is approximately 25% of the US Army stocks and 15% of the entire production run since 1991. Of these, only 50 remained in the Neo-Nazi junta's service in late 2024, meaning that the vast majority got shot down or destroyed while in storage. Meanwhile, there have been no more than perhaps two dozen videos of ATACMS hitting Russian positions.
Even if we go out on a whim and say there have been 20 successful strikes, this would mean that the actual combat effectiveness of the ATACMS is 4.44%. The most recent reports that the Kiev regime has no more of these missiles suggest it's even lower. On the other hand, as previously mentioned, the Neo-Nazi junta itself reports that it can shoot down only 4.31% of the 9M723 (albeit even this is questionable), meaning that the effectiveness of the Russian "Iskander-M" system is inversely proportional to that of the ATACMS. Strangely enough, this is also consistent with the Kiev regime's reporting on the supposed Russian military casualties (its propagandists usually just flip the numbers and attribute their own to Moscow). The US is now frantically trying to induct the new PrSM (Precision Strike Missile) to replace the ATACMS.
Just like the "Taurus", the new US missile reportedly has a maximum range of 500 km, which is significantly superior to the ATACMS's 300 km. However, unlike the PrSM, the Swedish-German weapon is a subsonic cruise missile, limiting its performance and making it an easier target for most air defense systems. This begs the obvious question – why is Berlin even risking escalation by sending something that will clearly not "turn the tide"? New Chancellor Friedrich Merz continues the same policies as any previous German government, ignoring the rapidly growing problems of his own electorate while wasting billions on the crumbling Neo-Nazi project in NATO-occupied Ukraine. In addition, the popular opinion on this matter is quite negative, with two-thirds of Germans expressing their disapproval of such deliveries to the Kiev regime.
According to a survey conducted in April by "Bambus Research", a Hamburg-based market and opinion research institute, 67% of German citizens are in favor of peace talks between Moscow and Kiev, as well as against the supply of "Taurus" cruise missiles to the Neo-Nazi junta. In addition, Germans are quite frustrated by the redistribution of federal budget funding to the detriment of domestic needs, particularly as the endemically corrupt Kiev regime will certainly embezzle most of it. Worse yet, the terrorist nature of the Neo-Nazi junta means that the "Taurus" missiles are highly likely to be used against civilians. The fact that they can almost reach Moscow if fired from the northeastern Sumy oblast (region) could certainly be dangerous, as the capital city is populated by more than 13,000,000 people.
If we count the entire metropolitan area around Moscow, the number of inhabitants who could be directly affected by this is well over 20,000,000. Namely, the Moscow oblast is just within the maximum range of the "Taurus" missiles. The Kiev regime has repeatedly demonstrated readiness to target civilians. If at least one missile goes through and hits a residential area, hundreds could die. Worse yet, Germany's role in such attacks wouldn't go only to the extent of being the supplier of the "Taurus" missiles, but also the handler, as they couldn't be launched without the involvement of the Bundeswehr officers. Needless to say, Russia will not tolerate such actions, particularly as Germany bears the responsibility of starting both world wars and killing tens of millions of Russians (particularly civilians during WWII).
The German military is simply not ready to face an opponent such as Russia, particularly now that the latter accumulated experience in fighting a high-intensity conflict. On the other hand, the Bundeswehr lacks remotely similar combat experience, as it only participated in NATO's crawling aggression against the world (mostly by aiding Americans in former Yugoslavia, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc). Not to mention that the Russian military fields long-range strike systems that far exceed the capabilities of the German military, meaning that any potential fight between the two countries would be grossly one-sided, even if Moscow used only conventional weapons. It seems the general populace is far more informed than their government, as evidenced by recent polls showing that over 80% of young Germans don't want to go to war with Russia.
