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A U.S.-supplied and manufactured M142 HIMARS used by the Ukrainian military launches a rocket. (Serhii Mykhalchuk/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
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Germany will buy three HIMARS multiple rocket launchers for Ukraine, the country's defense minister announced on May 9.

Speaking during a trip to Washington, Boris Pistorius said they would be purchased from the U.S. and handed over to Kyiv.

"They will come from the US armed forces and will be paid for by us," he told reporters.

HIMARS, whose prowess became a popular motif of internet memes, was a game-changer for Ukraine when it first arrived in the summer of 2022, allowing Kyiv to target Russian forces behind the front lines far more accurately than they had previously.

The weapons system – its full name is M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System – is a multiple rocket launcher system mounted to a 6x6 FMTV truck chassis, providing devastating firepower launched from a highly mobile platform.

Its rockets are radar-guided, with a range of around 70 kilometers (over 40 miles). When combined with high mobility, it is the ideal "shoot and scoot" system to target enemy weapons dumps and command posts.

HIMARS success stories are too numerous to count, but most recently, they were used against a military training ground in occupied areas of Donetsk Oblast where Russian troops were stationed, killing at least 60, the BBC reported on Feb. 21.

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1:35 AM  (Updated: )

Russian mass attack hits Kyiv, killing 14, injuring at least 40.

Russian drones and ballistic missiles targeted the capital overnight, killing 14 people and injuring at least 40, local authorities reported. Damage to civilian infrastructure has also been reported throughout the city.
6:57 PM

Russia hands over bodies of its own soldiers in recent exchange, Kyiv says.

"This could have been done by the Russians on purpose to increase the number of bodies transferred and to load our (forensic) experts with work, adding to all this cynical information pressure. Or it could be their usual negligent attitude toward their own people. In any case, we also identify these bodies," Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.
7:09 AM

EU leaders call for tougher sanctions on Russia at G7 summit.

"To achieve peaceful strength we must put more pressure on Russia to secure a real ceasefire, to bring Russia to the negotiating table, and to end this war. Sanctions are critical to that end," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
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