WASHINGTON, November 21 (Sputnik) – Some of the ATACMS missiles the United States promised to provide to Ukraine had already failed as early as 2015 and required a large amount of money to repair, according to an analysis of Pentagon budget documents by Sputnik.
On November 17, the New York Times reported, citing unnamed U.S. government officials, that U.S. President Biden has lifted restrictions on Ukraine’s use of the U.S.-provided long-range ATACMS missiles to carry out deep strikes on targets within Russia.
In addition to supporting Ukraine’s stated goals, the transfer of ATACMS missiles to Ukraine will save the United States millions of dollars in storage and technical maintenance of aging systems.
According to the report, some ATACMS missiles reached the end of their service life in 2015. The U.S. military spent $30.1 million in fiscal year 2016 to upgrade 10 of these missiles, extending their life by 10 years. However, by 2025, these missiles will be inoperable again.
The U.S. military spent $1.22 billion upgrading 1,075 ATACMS missiles between fiscal years 2016 and 2021. Another 240 new missiles were purchased in 2020, bringing the total number of such weapons to 1,575 by March 2023.
As ATACMS ages, the United States is actively replacing ATACMS with more advanced PrSM missiles. According to Pentagon documents, 42 PrSM missiles were purchased in fiscal year 2023, 110 in 2024, and 230 in 2025.
