Ukraine has begun using longer-range ballistic missiles against Russia that were secretly supplied by Washington, officials in the United States confirmed.
The weapons were sent as part of a previous US assistance package and arrived this month. Officials noted that the handover was not publicly announced to preserve Ukraine’s “operational security.”
The missiles have already been used at least once against Russian targets in the occupied Crimean peninsula.
More US weapons expected to arrive soonafter President Joe Biden signed a new $61 billion economic and military assistance package for Ukraine this Wednesday.
The properties of the new missile
The missiles that have already been secretly supplied are a longer-range version of the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), a State Department spokesperson confirmed Wednesday.
He MGM-140 ATACMS is a tactical ballistic missile designed and manufactured by the American defense company Lockheed Martin.
It uses a solid fuel propellant, measures approximately 4 meters in length and a diameter of 60.96 centimeters.
It has a 226-kilogram fragmented explosion WDU-18 warhead.
The most recent version sent by the US is the most far-reaching; 300 kmwith a GPS-assisted inertial navigation system.
It can be launched from an M270 multiple launch platform or the M142 High Mobility Artillery Missile System, better known by its acronym HIMARS.
It is a conventional ground-to-ground artillery system with the ability to hit targets farther than other military cannons, rockets and missiles.
Missiles “will make a difference”
The US previously supplied Ukraine with a version of medium-range ATACMS missiles, but had resisted sending the more powerful ones, in part because it felt it could compromise its own defense readiness.
US authorities were also concerned that The Ukrainians will use these weapons to attack within Russian territory, causing an escalation of the conflict.according to NBC.
Ukraine had requested the longer-range system for some time, and Biden secretly approved the shipment last February. It was “under the direct order of the president,” the State Department spokesperson said Wednesday.
The US “did not announce this when the order was given to maintain the operational security requested by Ukraine,” explained spokesman Vedant Patel.
Now, the increased reach of ATACMS has provided Ukraine with the ability to strike deeper into areas taken by Russiaparticularly in its bases, warehouses and logistics centers.
They were first used against a Russian airstrip in occupied Crimea, according to US media reports, and then in an attack on Russian troops in the occupied port city of Berdyansk on Tuesday night.
It is not known exactly how many missiles have been sent so far, but US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Washington planned to send more.
“They will make a difference,” Sullivan said. “But, as I said before… there is no magic bullet.”
Facing Russia’s offensive
The delivery of the new weapons has been in response to repeated requests for assistance made by Kyiv to the West, as its ammunition stocks have been depleted, while Russian advances have progressed.
After months of debate and stalemate in the US Congress, a new aid package was finally approved and signed by President Biden on Wednesday.
The new $61 billion in assistance largely includes the shipment of more weapons. This figure exceeds the total of $44 billion in assistance that the US has sent so far since the start of the Russian invasion.
“It will give greater security to the United States, it will give greater security to the world,” the president declared after authorizing the new aid.
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said: “Now we will do everything to recover half a year spent on debates and doubts.”
“What the occupier Russia was able to do in this time, what Putin plans now, we will have to give back to him,” he declared.
Zelensky recently warned to expect a Russian offensive in the coming weeks after Ukraine lost the city of Avdiivka over the winter.
Ukrainian forces have suffered from a shortage of ammunition and air defense systems in recent months and its officials attribute the loss of life and territory to the delay in military assistance from the US and other Western allies.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Wednesday that it was “certainly possible that Russia could make additional tactical gains in the coming weeks.”
Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, tens of thousands of people, mostly soldiers, have been killed or injured, and millions of people have been displaced from their homes.
*With additional reporting from BBC News’ Kathryn Armstrong and BBC arms analyst Chris Partridge
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