Ukraine new cruise missile:  Ukraine has unveiled its most powerful homegrown cruise missile, the Flamingo FP-5. This missile can strike targets over 3,000 kilometers inside Russian territory. Fire Point, a Ukrainian defense factory, designed the missile, which features a massive 1,150-kilogram warhead. This makes it an important asset in Kyiv's efforts to respond to Moscow's attacks.

All About Flamingo FP-5 

Iryna Terekh, CEO and technical director at Fire Point, told Politico that the Flamingo FP-5 was developed and tested within nine months. It moved from concept to battlefield trials at an unprecedented pace. "It is entirely Ukrainian-produced and quicker than any missile that we currently have," Terekh said to Politico, emphasizing the project's domestic roots.

The missile's destructive power far exceeds that of Ukraine's previous R-360 Neptune, which caused a major fire at a Russian refinery in 2023. The Neptune had a 150-kg warhead, while the Flamingo's payload of more than one ton represents an enormous increase in strike power. Video footage of a live test revealed the Flamingo FP-5 lifting off using a solid-fuel booster before going into turbofan-powered cruise mode. The missile will cruise at 850–900 km/h, have a top speed of 950 km/h, and stay aloft for over four hours. Measuring six metres in wingspan and 6,000 kg in maximum take-off weight, the FP-5 is bigger and heavier than its Western counterpart. The strange name of the missile has a surprising history. Initial prototypes were bright pink as a tribute to the women in charge of the project.

Key Features of the Flamingo FP-5 are:

•Range: 3,000 km (1,864 miles)

•Warhead: 1,000–1,150 k high-explosive payload

•Maximum speed: 590 mph (950 km/h)

•Guidance: Satellite and inertial navigation with resistance to electronic warfare

•Accuracy: CEP of approximately 14 metres

This makes the Flamingo FP-5 superior in range and destructive capability than the US-produced Tomahawk (range 1,600 km, warhead 450 kg) and the UK-French Storm Shadow (range 560 km, warhead 450 kg).President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine plans to deploy "many more" Flamingo missiles by December 2025 but remains coy about how they would operate. Fire Point has already commenced serial production, planning to produce 200 units every month.

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Russia's Response And International Significance

Moscow has attempted to downplay the importance of the missile. State news agency TASS stated the Flamingo is a copy based on British designs, an assertion rejected by Kyiv as propaganda. Ukrainian authorities maintain that Russian efforts to discredit the missile evidence legitimate concern over its capabilities.

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The new system arrives as Russian troops press their gradual push in the Donbas region, taking a number of villages in Donetsk as Ukraine makes counterattacks along the border of Dnipropetrovsk. As front-line combat drags on, the capability to attack deeper inside Russia may provide Kyiv with bargaining power in any future peace negotiations.