“We are working on Excalibur deployment [in Ukraine],” the official said during a press briefing.
The official added that the United States is currently conducting training for Ukraine troops on US artillery systems, High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) and howitzers. The training is taking place in Germany and the United Kingdom.
The United States has so far committed to Ukraine 126 howitzers and eight HIMARS systems. The first batch of four HIMARS systems has already arrived in Ukraine, according to the country’s defense ministry.
The Excalibur projectile (M982) is a precision weapon, impacting at a distance of less than two meters from the target and it extends the reach of .39-caliber artillery to 40 km (24 miles) and .52-caliber artillery to more than 50 km (30 miles). The weapon is developed and manufactured by Raytheon and BAE Systems AB.
On February 24, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine after the republics of Donetsk and Lugansk requested help to defend them from intensifying attacks by Ukrainian troops. Russia has said the operation is solely targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure and its goal is to demilitarize and de-Nazify the country.