A look at the Tomahawk, a U.S. cruise missile that could come into play in the Ukraine war

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Services on Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025, a residential building is seen on fire after a Russian strike in Nizhyn, Chernihiv region, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

WASHINGTON — The Tomahawk cruise missile has been in the U.S. military’s inventory since the 1980s. While slow by missile standards, the cruise missile flies around 100 feet (about 30 metres) off the ground, making it harder to detect by defence systems.

The missile also boasts an impressive range of around 1,000 miles (1,609 kilometres) and precision guidance systems that make it the go-to weapon for striking targets that are deep inland or in hostile territory. U.S. President Donald Trump has hinted that he might give Tomahawks to Ukraine, which could make a key difference for Kyiv in its war with Moscow.

Last year, The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Washington, estimated that the U.S. navy had roughly 4,000 Tomahawk missiles in its inventory in 2023. However, they noted that this estimate would have predated the significant military action against Houthi rebels in Yemen.

In defending from Houthi attacks and launching counterattacks, the U.S. navy said ships from the Eisenhower Carrier Strike group launched 135 Tomahawk missiles. That figure has likely only grown after the strike group returned home in the summer of 2024 since Trump ordered a month-long campaign of strikes against the group in the spring of 2025.

Meanwhile, the U.S. navy has not been ordering many new Tomahawk missiles. Pentagon budget documents show that in 2023 the U.S. navy and marine corps only bought 68 new missiles. The most recent budget documents show the U.S. navy hadn’t purchased any new missiles in the following years and the U.S. marine corps only bought 22 missiles last year. Neither the U.S. marines nor the U.S. navy requested to buy any new Tomahawk missiles in the latest budget.

Aside from dwindling stocks, several defence officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to more candidly discuss military policy also expressed skepticism about offering the missile to Ukraine because of questions about how it would be employed.

While the United States launched Tomahawk missiles almost exclusively from ships or submarines, Ukraine doesn’t possess a navy with ships capable of carrying the 20-foot-long missile. The U.S. army has been developing a platform to launch the missile from the ground, but one official said that the capability was still far from ready, even for U.S. forces.

Konstantin Toropin, The Associated Press