The US will send a new long-range rocket-propelled precision bomb to Ukraine as part of its latest $2.2 billion assistance package, the Pentagon announced on Friday.
The Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb is a 113-kilogram weapon with a GPS tracking system that can fly up to 93 kilometres, which would greatly expand Ukraine's range against Russian forces.
The weapon is capable of accuracy to within one metre, manufacturer Saab said.
“This gives them a longer range … capability that will enable them to conduct operations in defence of their country and to take back their sovereign territory,” Pentagon spokesman Brig Gen Pat Ryder told reporters.
The bomb gives Ukrainian forces the ability to attack Russian-occupied areas behind the front line, including Crimea. Brig Gen Ryder did not say if the weapons were to be used in Crimea.
“When it comes to Ukrainian plans on operations, clearly that is their decision. They are in the lead,” he added.
It will take about nine months for the weapons to be delivered once the US Air Force secures a contract, Bloomberg reported.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington would stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes”.
Other pieces of equipment the US is sending as part of the latest package include more ammunition for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, artillery and mortar rounds, mine-resistant vehicles, Javelin anti-tank missiles and mine resistant ambush protected vehicles.
Agencies contributed to this report
US Himars multiple launch rocket system — in pictures
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A High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (Himars) rocket fired by US forces during live-fire exercises in the Philippines. Reuters -
The Himars is a light multiple rocket launcher developed in the late 1990s. EPA -
Himars rockets are fired during US military exercises in Morocco. AFP -
Ukrainian soldiers ride on a vehicle carrying a rocket launcher in eastern Ukraine. AFP -
A vehicle fires the Himars during combat training in Yakima, Washington state. The Olympian / AP -
A soldier stands in the ruins of Mariupol's theatre, destroyed in Russian shelling. AFP -
A Himars rocket launcher displayed at the 2021 Dubai Airshow. AFP -
A Ukrainian soldier stands outside a school hit by Russian artillery in the village of Zelenyi Hai. AFP -
US military personnel stand by a Himars vehicle during a defence show in Saudi Arabia. AFP -
A US Himars is unloaded during military exercises in Latvia. EPA -
Ukrainian soldiers embedded in a trench on the front line in the Lugansk region. AFP
