How Russia lost momentum in Ukraine

 CBS News:

It's been a standard, largely-unnoticed part of the American military arsenal for decades. But when HIMARS (an acronym which stands for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) showed up in Ukraine, it changed the face of battle. "This capability has given the Ukrainians the potential to completely change the momentum and the direction of this war," said retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, former commander of the U.S. Army in Europe.

He said HIMARS, which fires a 200-pound warhead up to 50 miles and hits within 10 feet of its intended target, has virtually eliminated Russia's numerical advantage.

"You don't have to have hundreds of artillery rounds to achieve the same effect as one rocket fired from HIMARS," said Hodges.

CBS News national security correspondent David Martin asked, "Is Ukraine still outgunned?"

"In numbers, I'd say yes. But what really matters is effect. And the effect that Ukraine is achieving, it seems to me at this point to be superior to what the Russians are able to deliver."

Since June, the U.S. has shipped Ukraine 16 HIMARS launchers and thousands of rockets, which defense officials say the Ukrainians have used to attack more than 350 Russian command posts, ammo dumps, supply depots, and other high-value targets far back from the front lines.

Hodges said, "The HIMARS and other long-range capabilities have given the Ukrainians the ability to reach out and hit targets that the Russians would have thought were safe."

Martin asked, "Why can't they just move all these command posts and ammo dumps further back from the front line and get them out of range?"

"You still gotta get that ammunition to the guns, which are closer to the front," Hodges replied. "So, now you've increased the distance that the trucks have to move, carrying very heavy ammunition. And they've lost well over 1,000 trucks in this campaign so far. The result is significant reduction in the amount of Russian artillery and rocket fire impacting on Ukrainian forces."
...

It is obviously an effective weapon that the Russians have shown no ability to stop.  The Ukraine war is allowing the US to demonstrate weapon systems that would be used in any conflict with Russia.  It has also demonstrated the ineffectiveness of current Russian weapons systems. 

see, also:

Why the US is becoming more brazen with its Ukraine support

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