Russia announced that it had destroyed two US-made HIMARS MRLs
MOSCOW ($1=64.25 Russian Rubles) — The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced in a press release that the Russian armed forces have carried out airstrikes in the area of the settlement of Malotaranovka in the Donetsk region.
The strikes were carried out with precision air-launched missiles [unspecified how many] and destroyed two US-made and Ukraine-supplied HIMARS light multiple rocket launchers and two ammunition depots for them. The report of the Ministry of Defense is from July 6, but it does not indicate the exact date of the destruction of the two multiple rocket launchers. The Russian news agency TASS also reported the news, citing the report of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation for July 6, 2022.
The Ministry of the Russian Federation shares a video with air strikes on the night and early morning on 6 July.
Just two days ago, BulgarianMilitary.com published a video showing that Ukraine received the Western-supplied HIMARS light multiple rocket launchers and started using them. According to Ukrainian sources, the missile systems recorded in the video were used in the Zaporizhzhia axis region.
About M142 HIMARS
The M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System [HIMARS] is a light multiple rocket launcher designed in the late 1990s. This system also falls into the category of tactical ballistic system, because it fires a missile type MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System [ATACMS].
The manufacturer of M142 HIMARS is Lockheed Martin. The system has documented participation in three wars: the war in Iraq, the war in Afghanistan, and the Syrian Civil War. According to unconfirmed information and according to the claims of Ukraine’s military intelligence, the M142 HIMARS was delivered by the United States to the Ukrainian armed forces, and the system is actively involved in the war against Russia.
The United States, Singapore, the UAE, Jordan, and Romania are the operators of M142 HIMARS at the moment. Poland is the next country to acquire [or has already acquired] this missile system, and potential customers of M142 HIMARS are at least ten other countries from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
M142 HIMARS launches 227 mm caliber missiles. Depending on the type of ammunition, the system has a different operating range – from 2 to 300 km and from 300 to 500 km if it uses Precision Strike Missile [PsM] – a missile also manufactured by Lockheed Martin. The crew consists of three people, the main armament is 6 × 227 mm M26, M30 / M31 series rockets, or 1 MGM-140 ATACMS missile.
The M142 HIMARS is mounted on a standard Army M1140 truck frame. It is powered by a diesel engine that guarantees a top speed of 85 km / h [52.8 mph]. With one refueling of the fuel tank, the system can travel just under 500 km.
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 21 February 2022, the Russian government claimed that Ukrainian shelling had destroyed an FSB border facility on the Russia Ukraine border, and claimed that it had killed 5 Ukrainian soldiers who tried to cross into Russian territory. Ukraine denied being involved in both incidents and called them a false flag.
On the same day, the Russian government formally recognized the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR as independent states, according to Putin not only in their de-facto controlled areas, but the Ukrainian Oblasts as a whole, and Putin ordered Russian troops, including tanks, to enter the regions.
On 24 February 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine by Russian Armed Forces previously concentrated along the border. The invasion followed by targeted airstrikes of military buildings in the country, as well as tanks entering via the Belarus border.
Russia has so far not recognized the invasion of Ukraine as a “war”, although that is exactly what it is, claiming that it is a “special military operation”. According to the UN, in which Russia has its permanent representation, for military action to be defined as a “special military operation”, it must have a resolution issued by the UN. There is no such resolution, which automatically defines the military actions of the Russians as an invasion and war against the citizens of Ukraine.
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