Ukraine Gets 4 More HIMARS Systems to Counter Russia’s Missile Attacks: Defense Minister

After Russia launched a fresh wave of missile strikes on several Ukrainian cities on Tuesday, the U.S. sent four additional HIMARS multiple rocket launchers to protect Kyiv’s airspace.

“4 additional HIMARS from our U.S. partners have arrived! I thank President Joe Biden, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and the American people,” Oleksii Reznikov, Ukrainian Defense Minister, wrote on Twitter.

Ukraine now has 20 HIMARS systems protecting its skies. Four of those reportedly managed to hit 120 targets throughout the day and a half without any break. This is said to have broken the line of Russian defenses in the Kherson region.

Reznikov added that Ukraine has already received IRIS-Ts from Germany, and that U.S.-made NASAMS are on their way.

The new batch of weapons arrived on the eve of the Ramstein meeting on support for Ukraine, which is scheduled for October 12. This delivery was part of $625 million aid the U.S. announced in early October.

Ukraine is currently negotiating with Washington on obtaining used HIMARS systems.

Air raid sirens sounded across swaths of Ukraine for a third day on October 12. Following the latest escalation in Russia's unprovoked war in Ukraine, Zelenskyy asked the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) major industrialized countries in a video meeting to urgently provide Kyiv with anti-aircraft weapons to defend itself from Russian missiles.