ATACMS might appear at front in Ukraine as early as next week – mass media

In the coming days, the United States will give the green light for the transfer of missiles with long-range cluster munitions to Ukraine. And next week, ATACMS missiles will appear on the front, Newsweek reports.

"A decision on the HIMARS cluster missiles will probably be approved this week," said Dan Rice, who is now the president of the American University in Kyiv, citing conversations with "American decision-makers and the Americans who have to implement their delivery in Ukraine."

According to the publication, Dan Rice, a former US Army officer and West Point graduate, previously worked as a special adviser to Ukrainian commander-in-chief General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, advising on American weapons that could help turn the tide against a full-scale russian invasion that had begun.

"Getting HIMARS DPICM approval this week is a game-changer," Rice said. "And without the need for training and modifications, they will likely be on the battlefield next week, which will make a huge difference. When these missiles are launched, they are breaking the sound barrier; for me, it's the sound of freedom."

Rice has been working with US lawmakers and Pentagon officials for months to push for a munitions upgrade that would help win the war by enabling Ukrainian forces to devastate russian command posts, logistics centers, and supply routes in the occupied territories of southern Ukraine.

Kyiv has long insisted on ATACMS missiles, versions of which can deliver a solid high-explosive warhead 300 kilometers away. The cluster munition versions of the missiles have a shorter range and scatter hundreds of bombs over the target area.

The White House has consistently refused to supply any version of the ATACMS due to concerns about domestic stockpiles and concerns that its use by Ukraine could provoke escalating retaliatory measures from Moscow.

President Joe Biden appears poised to give the ATACMS transfer the green light after meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the UN General Assembly last week in New York. Which version of the weapon and how many missiles will be delivered remains unclear, as well as the timing of delivery.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on Friday, September 22, NBC News reported with reference to its own sources in Congress that the United States will provide Ukraine with a small batch of ATACMS missiles.

Earlier, before this, The Wall Street Journal also reported that the US leadership is close to approving the transfer of ATACMS missiles to Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, commenting on the provision of ATACMS missiles, said that Ukraine is working hard on this issue. According to him, the results of this work will be visible soon.

Meanwhile, the former commander of the US Army in Europe, Ben Hodges, believes that Ukraine could be provided with ATACMS ballistic missiles with a less powerful cluster part. This modification of the missile is not suitable for the destruction of large objects of the russian army.