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British Army M270 rocket launcher system, also to be used in Ukraine (archive image)
Photo:
INTS KALNINS / REUTERS
In the war against Russia, Ukraine says it has received a new rocket launcher system from the West.
"No mercy for the enemy," Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov wrote on Twitter.
The new M270 systems would keep the US Himars "good company on the battlefield," he said.
The tweet did not make it clear whether only one or several of the M270 systems had already been delivered.
Great Britain recently promised Ukraine such weapons.
The tracked M270 systems can load twelve missiles instead of six, unlike the truck-mounted Himars.
So far, Kyiv has received missiles with a range of around 80 kilometers for both systems.
However, Reznikov and other Ukrainian representatives are nurturing hopes for missiles with a range of up to 300 kilometers.
Germany is also already training Ukrainians on the successor system Mars II, which Kyiv is supposed to get from Berlin.
Ukrainian missile strikes have significantly reduced Russia's attack potential, said Oleksandr Motuzianyk, spokesman for Ukraine's Defense Ministry.
He emphasized the role played by US-made Himars.
"More than 30 enemy logistical military installations have been destroyed in the last few weeks," Motuzianyk said on Ukrainian television.
Motuzianyk separately told Reuters that these targets were destroyed by several launcher systems, including Himar.
If confirmed, this would indicate that Western weapons are having an impact on the war and are shifting the war dynamics after almost five months.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, seizing part of the territory in southern Ukraine and using its firepower in the east to make incremental territorial gains and eventually seize the Luhansk region.
A senior Ukrainian general said Russia had "not captured a single meter" of land in the last week.
Furthermore, Ukrainian attacks would have disrupted Russian supply lines and forced Moscow to keep its munitions farther from the front line.
This information could not be verified by an independent party.
jso/dpa/Reuters