Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu earlier this week ordered generals to prioritize destroying Ukraine’s long-range missiles and artillery after it used Western-supplied weapons to strike Russian supply lines. Nearly five months since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion, Russian forces are sweeping through eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region and occupying about a fifth of the country. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register “(We) will continue to find innovative ways to maintain our long-term support for the brave men and women of the Ukrainian armed forces and adjust our assistance to ensure that Ukraine has the technology, ammunition and ultimate firepower to to defend,” Austin said at the start of a mock meeting with allies on Ukraine. The West has supplied Ukraine with longer-range heavy artillery and multiple-launch missile systems so that it can hold out against Russian artillery superiority in numbers and ammunition. Ukraine says it has carried out successful strikes on 30 Russian logistics and munitions hubs, using several recently-supplied Western-provided multiple-launch missile systems. In a press conference after the meeting, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, said that Ukraine used HIMARS to strike Russian command and control nodes, logistic network and air defense positions inside Ukraine. About 200 Ukrainian forces had been trained on HIMARS, and none of the systems had been destroyed by Russian forces, Milley said. He added that one issue will be the rate of munitions being used by Ukrainian forces, although there will be no impact on United States readiness over the next two months at the current rate. Milley said the Donbas region had not yet been lost to the Ukrainians and described it as “a brutal war of attrition”. HIMARS have a longer range and are more accurate than the Soviet-era artillery that Ukraine had in its arsenal. Austin said the new package would also include rounds for multiple launch rocket systems as well as artillery ammunition. The latest package will bring the total number of HIMARS provided by the United States to Ukraine to 16. The United States has provided $8 billion in security assistance since the war began, including $2.2 billion in the last month. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that Moscow’s military “tasks” in Ukraine now extend beyond the eastern Donbass region, in the clearest admission yet that it has expanded its war aims. read more Austin said Lavrov’s comments appeared to be aimed at the Russian population. “This is not a surprise to any of us or anyone in Europe or anyone around the world, I think it speaks to the people in Russia who are not well informed,” Austin told reporters. The United States and allies are beginning to consider possible training for Ukrainian pilots as part of a project to help build a future Ukrainian air force, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown told Reuters. read more A number of different options for helping Ukrainian troops were being considered, including training for pilots, but no decision had been made, Milley said. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Idrees Ali. Additional reporting by Kanishka Singh and Mike Stone. Editing by Andrew Heavens, Andrew Cawthorne and Grant McCool Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
