Ukraine runs out of US-supplied ATACMS missiles – AP
Photo: Ukraine likely ran out of ATACMS missiles (Getty Images)
Ukraine has run out of the long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) previously supplied by the United States, with stocks being depleted as early as January, the Associated Press (AP) reports.
A US official and a Ukrainian lawmaker from the country’s Defense Committee told Western media that Ukraine no longer has ATACMS missiles in its arsenal.
Ukrainian and US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AP on March 12 that Ukraine has been out of ATACMS missiles since January.
According to the American official, the US has provided Ukraine with fewer than 40 ATACMS missiles in total.
The official also stated that Ukraine had depleted its ATACMS stockpile by late January.
"Senior US defense leaders, including the previous Pentagon chief, Lloyd Austin, had made it clear that only a limited number of the ATACMs would be delivered and that the US and NATO allies considered other weapons to be more valuable in the fight," AP reported.
Ukraine’s use of ATACMS
At the end of last year, Western media noted that Ukraine may already be running out of ATACMS missiles.
A December 2024 report by The New York Times informed that Ukraine had used US-supplied ATACMS missiles to strike Russian military targets. US and NATO representatives acknowledged the effectiveness of these strikes but suggested that Ukraine could have used the missiles more sparingly and been more selective in choosing targets.
The NYT report also indicated that, by November 17, when the US lifted restrictions on ATACMS strikes on Russian territory, Ukraine had only "dozens" of these missiles left.
RBC-Ukraine previously reported that the administration of former US President Joe Biden had permitted Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles to strike Russian territory. However, Western media suggested that Washington had limited their use to targets within Russia’s Kursk region.
Ukraine may have first used ATACMS missiles against Russian territory on November 19, targeting a military facility near the city of Karachev in the Bryansk region. The strike reportedly hit the 67th Arsenal of the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defense.
