Russians war reporters and military experts continue commenting on the successful deployment of HIMARS MLRS systems by Ukraine. Below is a collection of comments made today by various Russian sources.
Dimitriyev once again comments on HIMARS, raising concerns that the Russian air defence might become the next target for HIMARS and thus the cover from long-range missiles will be removed:
There’s a following problem with HIMARS: there is an assumption that the Russian air defence will become its target following warehouses and headquarters. The operational reach allows you to identify the location *of air defence* and strike it. And what happens when air defence loses its capabilities and cannot cover the territory? It will be possible to attack with long-range ballistic missiles, such as ATAC, which are not yet (YET!) supplied to Ukraine.
Also Dimitriyev describing the sophistication with which the HIMARS missile launch at Kherson two days ago broke through the barracks of Russian troops and exploded inside while evading air defence:
Dimitriyev: “A rocket fired from HIMARS which landed in Kherson the day before yesterday, flew into the barracks from above, broke through several floors and exploded inside. Presumably, it went to the target along a complex trajectory and evaded air defence”.
Large pro-Russian war reporter Telegram Channel “Rybar” claims that corrupt Ukrainians have sold one HIMARS to Russia. Similar claims have been previously made regarding Ceasar howitzers and other equipment supplied to Ukraine from the West. This piece was immediately picked up by a number of other pro-Russian channels.
The birds sang to us that a deal had been made for the sale of MLRS HIMARS to the Russian side. The price in question was 800 thousand dollars. Additionally, the question of transferring ammunitions for 330 thousand dollars is being decided.
The method of transfer chosen is extremely funny: leave the launcher in a shed in the gray zone, so that Russian servicemen “accidentally” stumble upon it during the sweep. Ukrainian “hoarders” definitely found use for their skills on the line of contact.
We are waiting in the next couple of weeks for a public confirmation of the “find”.
A number of pro-Russian sources share a piece by RIA Novosti citing “military expert” Khatylyev who explains how Russia will react to the Nova Kakhovka strike. The expert claims that the attack was a result of “intelligence mistake” on the Russian side and that Ukrainian Armed Forces will be unable to deal similar strikes in the future. This is something we will see very soon.
We will be 100% ready.
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According to Khatylev, it is still too early to draw conclusions, but one thing is possible to say for sure: the strike was prepared in advance. Three days before this a group of American satellites was discovered over Nova Kakhovka, which recorded “the coordinates of the troops, their condition and other parameters.” “We don’t know if HIMARS was used there or not. Today it is possible only to say that the strike was carried out multidimensionally, and was prepared in advance, ”- military expert said.
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Khatylev stressed that in order to fully understand the situation, it is necessary to establish whether there is an air defence system in the area, command points and whether there is a air fighter cover. It is also necessary to analyse fragments and other characteristics of missiles. Sergei Khatylev said that the strike of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is most likely an intelligence mistake, because that the attack could have been prevented and casualties avoided.
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“UAF will not fire like this anymore, and we will be 100% ready for this. How to reflect, where to reflect and how to discover *the missiles*. The means of attack have changed, time will pass, we will be ready to adapt to them – this is called combat experience”,Khatylev noted. The colonel in the reserve also named the parameters which the army needs to work on to stop missiles firing from 300 and 500 kilometer distance. According to Khatylev, it is necessary to analyze the situation, bring the combat alert system to a state of readiness – this will allow open fire in a few minutes. Also, all types of troops will have to consolidate and operate under common management. This set of measures will prevent and repel such strikes in the future.
