“Range anxiety” is a phrase most often associated with electric vehicles having to regularly charge their batteries. But it is also central to an understanding of the protracted nature of the limited war being fought between Russia and Ukraine. Range in this case means something different, of course. It is the limited distance at which Ukraine can strike Russian military targets that is effectively imposed on Kyiv by the weaponry supplied by Ukraine’s western allies.
The willingness of Kyiv’s allies to supply ever more sophisticated military aid has evolved over the year. Initially, western aid to Ukraine was limited to Manpad air defence systems and handheld anti-tank weapons. But this has gradually been extended to include sophisticated air defence systems, armoured fighting vehicles and the promise of main battle tanks such as US Abrams, German Leopard 2 and British Challengers.
