Thanks to the army's skill strategic use of weapons, Ukraine is 'making progress' on the battlefield

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he believed Ukraine was "making progress," in the country's Kherson region as they continued to resist the Russian invasion, adding there had been "some kind of change in the dynamics of the battlefield."

Austin attributed the changes to the skills of Ukrainian soldiers and their use of strategic weapons supplied by US and NATO allies, in particular the use of the high mobility air rocket system, or HIMARS. He made the comments in an exclusive interview with CNN's Fareed Zakaria that aired Sunday on "Fareed Zakaria GPS."

"What we're seeing now is sort of a change in battlefield dynamics," Austin said. “They have done very, very well in the Kharkiv area and moved to take the chances. The fight in the Kherson region is going a little slower, but they're making progress." Austin said Ukrainian forces had used "HIMARS-like technology" and used it in the "right way" to "carry out attacks on things like logistics stores and command and control, which take - take significant capabilities out of Russia."

By doing so, Ukraine has "changed the dynamic, and that creates opportunities for Ukraine to maneuver," he added.

When asked why the US was not supplying the long-range weapons Ukraine had requested, Austin said he communicated with his Ukrainian counterpart, Defense Secretary Oleksii Reznikov, "on a regular basis," and believed the US had been "very effective in providing them with those weapons." very, very effective things on the battlefield.” While the US has provided Ukraine with HIMARS and a dual launch rocket system, or GMLRS, for use with the HIMAR system, Ukraine has requested the Army's Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, which has a longer range than the US GLMR system. has been provided so far.

The ATACMS has a range of about 185 miles. The maximum range of weapons the US provides to Ukraine is about 49 miles.

Austin praised the success the Ukrainians had on the battlefield and noted that they used the weapons and technology given to them by the US in the “right way.” “It's not just about the equipment you have. It's about how you use the equipment, how you sync things together to create a battlefield effect that can then create opportunities," he said.

Austin said what would happen in Ukraine was "hard to predict," but he said the US would "continue to provide security assistance to Ukraine for as long as needed."

source: https://edition.cnn.com/2022/10/02/politics/lloyd-austin-ukraine-china-taiwan-cnntv/index.html