The US military deployed its first long-range hypersonic weapon (LRHW) in February, the military announced in late March.
Deployment of hypersonic missiles
Soldiers from the 5th Battalion and the 3rd Field Artillery Regiment carried out the exercise. Members of the 3rd Field Artillery Regiment and the 5th Infantry Battalion participated in the drill.
Our troops were able to process real-world operations using real-world data in real time, with tangible results that could be used for training and preparation. We’re practicing our battle plans, and our troops are prepared to use this vital capacity in the future,” said 1st MDTF commander Brig. Gen. Bernard Harrington.
“Thunderbolt Strike demonstrated the power of interagency cooperation to build the multi-domain force of the future,” Harrington said. “The Army’s second half of the year of long-range precision fire will continue to represent pioneering advances toward integrated deterrence in the Pacific.”
Context of the advancement of weapons
The tension between Russia and the United States has been increasing. Russia has expressed anger over continued US support for Ukraine amid the Russian invasion.
Threats have been exchanged, raising the possibility that the United States will thoroughly evaluate its military options. Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s ex-president, likened current American policies to that of the Nazis and threatened the country with hypersonic cruise missiles.
“1000 km range with hypersonic Mach 9 and the ability to use any payload guaranteed to overcome any anti-missile defense,” Medvedev threatened. “Let him [Gorshkov] stay somewhere 100 miles off the coast, closer to the Potomac River.” The Potomac flows through Washington, DC, the capital of the United States.
Russia threatens to launch missiles at the ICC.
Just eight days before the US military announced, Medvedev suggested launching a hypersonic missile at the International Criminal Court (ICC).
It is widely assumed that Putin’s speech is a retaliatory response to the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) issue of an arrest warrant for Putin for war crimes committed during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
