One of the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers the US has provided to Kiev has been destroyed in the Sumy region of Ukraine, according to a high-resolution video published by the Russian Defense Ministry.
Several thousand troops crossed over from Sumy into Russia’s Kursk Region last week in a move that Moscow has described as an act of terrorism. They were seeking to relieve pressure on the Donbass front and to seize some Russian territory as a bargaining chip. Moscow has responded with intense air and artillery strikes against the invaders.
The video, released on Thursday, shows drone footage of the M142 HIMARS firing a couple of missiles from a road somewhere in Sumy Region. The unit then moves down the road and into woods to reload.
Within minutes, an Iskander ballistic missile strikes the woods, destroying the Ukrainian rocket launcher. The video showed secondary explosions of HIMARS ammunition as well.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the strike destroyed the launcher, a six-rocket reloading pod, and two service vehicles of the Ukrainian artillery unit.
The M142 is mounted on a wheeled truck chassis and can fire volleys of GPS-guided rockets, converted aircraft bombs, or long-range ATACMS ballistic missiles. The US has provided Ukraine with at least 40 launchers, according to information released by the Pentagon.