Pentagon Speaker Patrick Ryder denied Newsweek’s information about the US’s alleged intentions to dispose of ATACMS missiles, which will soon expire.
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I saw these reports in the media. We have looked at them and it is not true. These reports are false,” Pat Ryder responded to Voice of America journalist Carly Bubb.
The day before, Newsweek published a story saying that the United States had “hundreds” of long-range ATACMS missiles that were reaching the end of their service life and were being scrapped. Journalists asked whether it would be more appropriate to transfer these missiles to Ukraine.
Hundreds of ATACMS missiles of the M39 and M39A1 modifications, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, are planned to be destroyed at significant expense to American taxpayers, Daniel Rice, a former special adviser to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny, told Newsweek.
They could be sent to Ukraine and used very effectively against Moscow’s forces. The shelf life of this type of missile is not a concern – they are in working order. The US replaces all weapons with time to be better, deadlier and more cost-effective, but the modified weapons could make a big difference to Ukraine’s military efforts. With more ATACMS, Ukraine could target Russian bases, infrastructure and force generation across tens of thousands of square miles of territory, Rice noted.
Lieutenant General Ben Hodges agreed with his colleague:
More ATACMS would give Ukraine the tools to strike Russian forces in every square mile of Ukraine and would make the Russian military and logistical presence in Crimea untenable, so there is no compelling reason not to provide weapons.
Ukraine unofficially received the first batch of ATACMS in October 2023. This was not announced then, but Western media wrote about 20 missiles received. Already on October 17, it became known that ATACMS hit the airfield of occupied Berdyansk. The video of the rocket launch was published by Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.