The US plans to dispose of hundreds of man-portable air defence systems and missiles ATACMS that have expired, according to Newsweek. Instead, the weapons could be transferred to Ukraine as military aid.
What is known about US intentions to dispose of hundreds of ATACMS systems
According to the publication’s journalists, significant budgetary funds are planned to be spent on the elimination of old ATACMS and their missiles.
According to Daniel Rice, the former Special Adviser to the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, the missiles and systems that the US authorities intend to dispose of remain effective, highly accurate and legal cluster weapons.
Rice is convinced that the United States could transfer these systems and missiles to Ukraine without worrying about the expiration date.
They work. Any weapon is eventually replaced by better, more lethal, more cost-effective weapons. The M39s add the range, accuracy and lethality that Ukraine lacks without them, Rice said.
Former U.S. commander in Europe, retired General Ben Hodges, notes that it all depends on when these missiles and systems expired, as such weapons remain operational for many years after their expiration date.
Hodges believes that the US refusal to provide Ukraine with these systems and missiles will be due to political motives, not security ones.
According to Fabian Hintz, research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Defence Studies and Military Analysis in the Middle East, the key to transferring missiles and systems that have reached the end of their service life is to keep the solid propellant rocket engine in good condition.
And the shelf life of a control system can be much longer than the manufacturer claims.
At the same time, Daniel Rice notes that the United States plans to dispose of tens of thousands of units that could be transferred to Ukraine and used with HIMARS launchers.
In particular, with a sufficient number of M39 missiles, the Ukrainian military could destroy the supply chains of the occupying Russian army in southern Ukraine.
They can also reach targets in the Sea of Azov and strike key facilities on Russian-occupied territory.
In his turn, Ben Hodges noted that the cluster version of this missile would not be able to reach, for example, Russian military facilities in Sevastopol.
According to him, Ukraine needs more automated process control systems, and there is no reason not to transfer them.
At the same time, the spokesman for the US National Security Council at the White House, John Kirby, refused to confirm or deny information about the possible transfer of expired missiles and anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine.
What is known about reaction of analysts to decision of the US authorities
According to Doug Klein, a policy analyst at Together for Ukraine and a fellow at the Atlantic Council, reports of the US intention to dispose of hundreds or thousands of old missiles instead of considering transferring them to Ukraine are worrying.
On the social media X, he appealed to various US Congressional committees overseeing the administration to prevent this from happening.
He called for the immediate deployment of ATACMS to Ukraine, stressing that "the White House has run out of excuses".
Linas Linkevicius, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, reacted to this.
The toothless and spineless policy against Russia has created a monster. Today, they are paying in blood for the delay in supplying Ukraine with much-needed ATGMs and long-range Taurus artillery. What are we waiting for? Or are we creating hope for the aggressor's survival? — Linkevicius emphasised.
Shelby Magid, the deputy director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center, addressed Biden directly on the social network X.
She stated that the destruction of ATAСMS is "absolutely dangerous and crazy if it really happens".
Well, Mr President. Ukrainian children are dying in their homes, others are trembling in bomb shelters and underground stations, and Ukrainian leaders and human rights activists are begging for more weapons and ATGMs to protect their communities from attack, Magid said.
