Until now, Ukraine has not had the opportunity to launch strikes on Russian territory using ATACMS missiles, which are capable of hitting at a distance of up to 300 km.
US President Joe Biden, at the very end of his term in power, lifted the ban on strikes with ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles on Russian territory, some American media reported, citing unidentified interlocutors in White House. The New York Times and Washington Post were the first to write about it, then, in particular, the television companies CNN and CBS received the same information through their channels.
Anonymous interlocutors of the newspapers said that Biden made this decision in response to sending North Korean troops to help Russia in the Kursk region.
One official said the move was partly aimed at deterring Pyongyang from sending more troops. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un needs to understand that sending the first units was a costly mistake, the official said.
What kind of rockets
ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) are tactical ballistic missiles launched, in particular, from HIMARS installations. Their different modifications have different ranges, the maximum is about 190 miles, that is, about 305 km.
Until now, Washington has explained its reluctance to authorize its missile strikes on Russian territory by saying it fears escalation. The CNN columnist explained that Russia, in the opinion of the United States and other NATO countries, could respond, for example, by destroying their territory.
Judging by what American newspaper interlocutors have said, these concerns remain. According to one of them, this is why the consequences of using missiles with Biden’s permission are “very specific and limited.”
Are there still restrictions?
The CNN columnist believes that the United States simply will not provide the Ukrainians with enough missiles to turn the tide of the war. Evelyn Farkas, who under Barack Obama managed US relations with Russia and Ukraine at the country’s Ministry of Defense, also speaks about this.
“Of course, the main question is how many missiles they have. As we heard, the Pentagon warned that the US can only give Ukraine so many of these missiles,” Farkas told the BBC.
Where to hit
There are nearly 250 military installations of the Russian Federation within the 300-kilometer ATACMS area.
There are not only Russian regiments, battalions, brigades, GRU intelligence centers and other units, but also military academies and training grounds, warehouses and repair and technical bases, factories and concerns of the Russian military-industrial complex.
All ATACMS are ballistic missiles that reach near-hypersonic speeds. During the flight, these missiles reach a speed of Mach 3 (approximately 3675 km/h) and hit the target along a complex ballistic trajectory, while, for example, the Storm Shadow aircraft cruise missile is subsonic ( speed of Mach 0.8). Therefore, it is more difficult for Russian air defense systems to intercept ATACMS. “In order to intercept such missiles, it is necessary to create a layered air defense system with S-400/S-300 V and Buk complex of the latest modifications,” the Militarny portal previously explained.
In terms of their rocket dimensions, all ATACMS are almost identical, about 4 m long and about 610 mm wide.
ATACMS missiles are launched from M270 tracked multiple launch rocket systems or similar HIMARS M142 wheeled launchers. Both of these systems are in service with the Ukrainian Armed Forces and were previously transferred to the Ukrainian forces.
Source: korrespondent
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.