The U.S. military is ready to send Ukraine some of its long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) armed with cluster munitions, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 3, citing the U.S. military's chief weapons buyer.
Doug Bush, the assistant secretary of the U.S. military for acquisition, logistics, and technology, said that the force has already identified the missiles that will be sent to Ukraine.
The U.S. military "has been postured for this eventuality for a while," Bush told Bloomberg, adding that "we're ready when and if the president decides to do this."
According to the U.S. military's official weapons handbook, cluster-armed ATACMS have a range of up to 300 kilometers (190 miles) and can carry up to 950 cluster munitions, Bloomberg said.
To fire the weapons, Ukrainian forces will need to make some minor modifications to launchers already used to fire GPS-guided missiles, Bush added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has long been campaigning for the delivery of ATACMS, due to their ability to hit targets deep behind the front line.
On Sept. 22, multiple media outlets reported that Biden had agreed to deliver a limited number of the missiles.
The reports came shortly after Zelensky’s four-day visit to the United States, during which he met with Biden and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The date or further details of the delivery of ATACMS have not yet been revealed.
Dinara Khalilova
