WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) – The United States will send four more highly mobile artillery missile systems (HIMARS) to Ukraine, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday in the latest military package to help the country defend itself against Russian forces .
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu earlier this week ordered generals to prioritize destroying Ukraine’s long-range missiles and artillery after Western-supplied weapons were used to strike Russian supply lines.
Nearly five months since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion, Russian forces are sweeping through the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine and occupying about a fifth of the country.
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“(We) will continue to find innovative ways to sustain our long-term support for the brave men and women of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and will tailor our assistance to ensure that Ukraine has the technology, ammunition and sheer firepower to defend itself Austin said at the start of a virtual meeting with allies on Ukraine.
The West has equipped Ukraine with longer-range heavy artillery and salvo-launch missile systems so that it can hold its own against Russian artillery superiority in numbers and ammunition.
Ukraine claims to have carried out successful strikes on 30 Russian logistics and munitions centers using several multiple-launch missile systems recently supplied by the West.
At a press conference after the meeting, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, said that Ukraine had used HIMARS to strike Russian command and control nodes, a logistics network and air defense sites in Ukraine.
About 200 Ukrainian servicemen have been trained on HIMARS, and none of the systems have been destroyed by Russian forces, Milli said.
He added that the percentage of munitions used by Ukrainian forces would be an issue, although there would be no impact on United States readiness over the next few months at the current rate.
Milli said the Donbass region was not yet lost to the Ukrainians and described it as a “tiring war of attrition”.
HIMARS have a longer range and are more accurate than the Soviet artillery that Ukraine had in its arsenal.
Austin said the new package would also include cartridges for multiple launch missile systems as well as artillery ammunition.
The latest package will bring the total number of HIMARS the United States has provided to Ukraine to 16.
The United States has provided $8 billion in security assistance since the war began, including $2.2 billion in the past month.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that Moscow’s military “tasks” in Ukraine now extend beyond the eastern Donbass region, in the clearest acknowledgment yet that it has expanded its military goals. Read more
Austin said Lavrov’s comments appeared to be aimed at the Russian population.
“It’s not a surprise to any of us or anybody in Europe or anybody in the world, I think he’s talking to the people in Russia who have been misinformed all along,” Austin told reporters. .
The United States and allies are beginning to explore possible training for Ukrainian pilots as part of a project to help build a future Ukrainian air force, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown told Reuters. Read more
A number of different options for helping Ukrainian troops, including pilot training, are being considered, but no decision has been made, Milli said.
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Reporting by Idreis Ali; Additional reporting by Kanishka Singh and Mike Stone; Editing by Andrew Havens, Andrew Cawthorne and Grant McCool
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