Since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in February this year, the United States has provided Ukraine with hundreds of millions of military assistance, including about 20 sets of "Haimas" high-mobile rocket launcher systems. Recently, the US Capitol Hill newspaper reported that the "Haimas" rocket launcher provided by the United States to Kiev has undergone special modifications, with the purpose of which is to prevent the Ukrainian army from launching long-range rockets to attack Russia's mainland and avoid escalating conflicts.
The ordinary rocket equipped with "Haimas" is 70 kilometers.
Then a US official responded, saying that Pentagon has indeed modified the launch system of the "Haimas" rocket launcher, so that it cannot fire long-range rockets, including the US Army tactical missile with a range of nearly 200 miles. This can effectively reduce the possibility that the Ukrainian army will attack Russia with the help of the "Haimas" rocket launcher. U.S. officials stressed that such preventive measures are necessary to prevent a larger-scale conflict. Some analysts believe that this is an effort made by the White House to avoid the continued tension in relations with Moscow .
In addition, the Capitol Hill newspaper also disclosed that when US President Biden decided to provide Ukraine with the "Haimas" rocket launcher to Ukraine in May this year, it promised that the US would not provide Ukraine with rocket launcher systems that could threaten Russia's local security, and Ukrainian President Zelensky also publicly stated that it would not use this type of rocket launcher system to attack Russia. Russia believes that Zelensky's promise is not credible. Perhaps the United States did not believe Zelensky's promise, so it tampered with on the "Haimas" rocket launcher system. It is said that the range of the "Haimas" rocket launcher currently used by the Ukrainian army shall not exceed 44 miles (about 70 kilometers).
Ukraine has not obtained the Army tactical missile
"Haimas" high-motorized rocket launcher system officially known as the M142 self-propelled rocket launcher. It is a type of rocket launcher equipped by the US Army using off-road truck chassis. Due to its reliable performance and long-range range, it is widely used by the US Army and the Marine Corps . The "Haimas" system carries a six-unit rocket launch module, loaded with 6 227mm rockets, each rocket is equipped with 1,288 sub-munitions, and a killing range of 60,000 square meters in one round of volleys, equivalent to 9 standard football fields. During the Gulf War period, the predecessor of "Haimas", the tracked version of M270 rocket launcher, once showed its power, bringing impressive fear to the Iraqi soldiers.
The Pentagon’s concerns still have some basis. Since Ukraine has stabilized its position on the battlefield, the Ukrainian army's attack on Russian local targets has never been interrupted. On the 5th of this month, Ukraine even used suicide drones to attack the Engels military airport in Saratov Prefecture of Russia. It is worth mentioning that this airport is one of the stations of the Russian Aerospace Forces Tu-22 strategic bombers, about 600 kilometers away from the Ukrainian border. It is hard to imagine what situation the Ukrainian army would face if it could use the "Haimas" rocket launcher system to attack Russia's mainland, and what situation would the prefectures and cities near the Russian-Ukrainian border face.
"Haimas" predecessor was the crawler M270 multi-barrel rocket launcher
For several months, the Ukrainian army used the "Haimas" rocket launcher to launch multiple rounds of long-range strikes, causing considerable trouble to the logistics supply of multiple fronts of the Russian army. In October, the "Haimas" rocket launcher participated in destroying the Crimea Bridge , directly cutting off the supply route of the Russian army on the southern front. It can be said that the "Haimas" rocket launcher indirectly led to the decision of the Russian senior management to evacuate Khelson . In recent days, the "Haimas" rocket launcher successfully destroyed the Russian 20th Army Command located at Ijium , about 70 kilometers from the target, with its accuracy astonishing. According to the current situation where both sides have "red-eyed", if the "Haimas" rocket launcher has the ability to attack Russia, Zelensky's so-called "commitment" may be just an empty talk.
"Haimas" accurately destroyed the train tracks
In the first half of this year, some senators in the U.S. political circles suggested providing Ukraine with MQ series attack drones and other assault weapons, with the intention of panicing the Russian people by attacking targets in Russia, thereby shortening the war process. However, similar proposals Biden never agreed to. On the one hand, he believed that this harassing operation could not fundamentally attack Russia's war capabilities, and on the other hand, he was worried that these cutting-edge weapons would be seized by the Russian army.
At the same time, Russia is also constantly accusing the United States and its allies of providing weapons to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Zakharova once warned that if the United States provides Ukraine with any weapons that can strike Russia's mainland, the United States will become a party to the conflict. Fortunately, the United States and NATO currently have no plans to "rebuild" the Ukrainian Air Force.
Although the Biden administration has played a certain restrictive role in Ukraine's attack on Russia, this cannot conceal the fact that the United States is "inflame". As the war progressed, the weapons provided by the United States and its allies to Ukraine changed from a simple single-soldier air defense weapon model to an attempt to build a "NATO-style" Ukrainian army. Today, the Ukrainian army, from main battle tanks, armored vehicles, , to automatic rifle , and even individual soldiers' rations, all exuded a strong "Western-style color". The battlefield in Russia and Ukraine has become a arena for Western and Russian weapons.
U.S. military has delivered more than 20 sets of "Haimas" rocket launchers to Ukraine
Since Biden took office, the United States has provided billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine, and Biden also promised to provide Ukraine with a total of 19.3 billion US dollars in military aid. The current scale of aid is far from meeting Ukraine's needs, which means that the United States will continue to "transfusion" blood to Ukraine. Earlier last month, the US Department of Defense once again announced that it would provide Ukraine with a new round of military aid, with a total amount of about US$400 million, including "Hawk", "Sthorn", "Avengers" and other air defense systems . Meanwhile, the US Department of Defense provided a purchase order for the "Haimas" rocket launcher to Lockheed Mart . It is understood that this fee will be directly allocated from the funding of the US Army for 2023 fiscal year. Overall, the United States' strategy and policy of providing military assistance to Ukraine will not change in the short term.
