According to the US official, the HIMARS was discreetly changed so that it could not launch long-range missiles towards Russia before being sent to Ukraine.
According to unidentified US sources published in the WSJ yesterday, December 5, the Pentagon intervened in the M142 High Mobility Rocket System (HIMARS) before it was transferred to Ukraine to prevent them from launching the Army Tactical Missile (ATACMS) MGN-140 with a range of 300 km.
If Ukraine can purchase ATACMS missiles from nations that already own them or manufacture a compatible missile munition, this clandestine activity is meant to stop them from doing so.
After being modified, the HIMARS complexes transported to Ukraine can only fire the Guided Serial Launch Rocket (GMLRS) with an approximate 80 km range, used to ambush Russian command posts and supplies depots on the area.
The Wall Street Journal stated that this action exemplifies the administration of US President Joe Biden’s efforts to strike a balance between military assistance to Ukraine and preventing escalation with Russia.
This also reflects the worries of Biden administration officials with respect to their Ukrainian colleagues’ resolute refusal to conduct weapon-assisted incursions into Russian territory.
White House officials and the Pentagon chose not to respond to the news.
Ukraine requested repeatedly that the US send ATACMS missiles for HIMARS artillery in order to improve its capacity to strike Russian targets. The US, however, turned down this request out of concern that Ukraine may use them to attack Russian targets, spiralling the situation out of hand.
In addition to rejecting the delivery of ATACMS missiles, the US also declined to send modern MQ-1C unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) out of concern that Ukraine might use them to attack Russian territory or that Russian forces might shoot them down and take their valuable technology.
HIMARS is an extremely accurate self-propelled multiple rocket launcher that is mounted on a wheeled chassis.
The HIMARS launcher vehicle can move out of the firing position swiftly to avoid being fired and reach a top speed of 85 km/h. About 20 HIMARS complexes, which are regarded as one of Ukraine’s most potent weapons in its conflict with Russia, have been delivered by the US to Kiev.
On December 2, Russian media reported that the Russian air defence had received a software update that made it simple for its systems to find and shoot down rockets fired from HIMARS cannons. However, the mechanism and details were not made public. related information
