The Pentagon said that the new package of US assistance to Ukraine will include 4 American MLRS HIMARS
The Pentagon announced that it will provide $400 million in military assistance to Ukraine. The new aid package will also include four HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems. As well as shells for them, three tactical vehicles, explosive charges and counter-battery warfare systems. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky expressed hope that the timely provision of military assistance to Kiev will allow the end of hostilities by the end of 2022.
The United States announced the allocation of a new package of military assistance to Ukraine in the amount of approximately $ 400 million. According to the Pentagon, it will include "high-precision weapons" of long range.
"Within the framework of today's package, the main focus is on high-precision weapons of high range. In this case, we are talking about the supply of HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems," said a representative of the US Defense Ministry, specifying that Washington will supply Kiev with four MLRS.
"To date, eight such systems have been delivered to Ukraine. Taking into account the new aid package, their total number will reach 12," she added. These systems, depending on the projectiles used, are capable of destroying targets at a distance of up to 300 km.
The new package of American aid will also include 1,000 additional 155-millimeter artillery ammunition, explosive charges, counter-battery warfare systems, as well as spare parts.
According to her, the United States is in constant contact with Ukraine regarding the fate of weapons supplied to Kiev, carefully monitoring their use and taking this data into account when planning new military assistance.
"Indeed, we carefully monitor these weapons from the moment we send them to Ukraine and before they appear on the battlefield. We, military leaders, experts and specialists, are in contact with Ukrainians to understand how they use these weapons," the military department noted.
"Ukraine will be able to continue fighting"
According to another high-ranking Pentagon official, the United States considers it an "important element" to show Russia that Ukraine "will be able to continue fighting."
According to TASS, he stressed that the weapons sent to Kiev are highly accurate.
A senior Pentagon official also suggested that NASAMS anti-aircraft missile systems supplied to Ukraine "will be on the battlefield" within a few months.
"I am not ready to announce the exact date, but I expect that this is a matter of several months," RIA Novosti quotes a representative of the department.
"Everything is moving, as was decided by President [US Joe Biden]. I can't give details, but we don't see any difficulties," he said.
Deliveries for years to come
The Pentagon also said that Washington, together with allies and partners, is discussing the possibility of supplying Kiev with new coastal defense systems.
The total amount of US military aid provided to Kiev amounted to $7.3 billion since the beginning of the Russian special operation.
On July 1, the Pentagon press service announced the allocation of another $820 million package of military assistance to the Ukrainian side. It is known that it includes new NASAMS anti-aircraft missile systems and anti-artillery radars.
In addition, on June 15, US President Joe Biden approved the allocation of military aid to Ukraine in the amount of $ 1 billion, as well as $ 225 million in humanitarian aid, and in May, the US authorities approved military and humanitarian aid to Kiev for $ 40 billion. At the same time, the HIMARS MLRS was included in the military aid package. On June 23, the Ukrainian authorities announced the receipt of the first missile systems.
Destroyed HIMARS systems
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Russian high-precision air-launched missiles destroyed two launchers of HIMARS systems.
"In the area of the settlement of Malotaranovka, Donetsk People's Republic, high-precision air-launched missiles destroyed two launchers of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system manufactured by the United States and two ammunition depots for them," said the official representative of the department Igor Konashenkov on July 6.
The Pentagon denied the statements of the Russian Defense Ministry about the destruction of two installations.
Finish the fights this year
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky believes that the timely provision of military assistance to Kiev will allow the end of hostilities by the end of 2022.
The President of Ukraine also expressed hope that Joe Biden will pay a visit to his country. Earlier, Zelensky called insufficient assistance from the United States. The President of Ukraine pointed out that "the whole world is helping Kiev" by providing humanitarian, financial or military support, but "everything could have been easier" if the country had been accepted into NATO.
Moscow earlier sent a note to NATO countries because of arms supplies to Kiev. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov pointed out that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. The diplomatic department noted that the alliance countries are "playing with fire" by supplying weapons to Kiev. At the same time, the Kremlin pointed out that the supply of weapons to Ukraine from the West does not contribute to the success of the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative effect.
Alice Andreeva
