The White House has been reluctant to send over-efficient weapons, as it is wary of provoking Russia too much.
The United States is preparing to send heavy rocket launcher systems to Ukraine, according to numerous sources in the news channel To CNN (switch to another service). According to CNN Joe Biden the administration plans to announce the matter as early as next week.
The administration plans to send rocket launcher systems as part of a larger support package.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi and the Secretary of State Dmytro Kuleba have in recent weeks appealed to Washington for the United States and its allies to send Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) systems to Ukraine.
Weapon systems made in the United States can fire rockets up to hundreds of kilometers, far beyond any existing system in Ukraine. According to Ukrainians, it could help the country in the war against Russia in a significant way.
The range of conventional artillery used by the Russians is about 50 kilometers. If the Ukrainian artillery carried further, they could use it to push Russian artillery back.
Western countries, led by the United States, have previously donated some longer-range weapons to Ukraine, such as M777 howitzers. Their advantage is lightness, allowing cannons to be moved to stations even by helicopter.
However, the effective range of the M777 oxidizer is only about 24 to 40 kilometers, depending on the projectile.
The United States is hesitant because it cannot be sure how Ukraine would use more powerful weapons
CNN writes that another system requested by Ukraine is the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, known by the acronym HIMARS. It is lighter and equipped with wheels, making it easier to move around.
However, the system is capable of firing many of the same types of ammunition as the MLRS system. It is not known whether the possible support package also includes HIMARS systems.
According to CNN sources, the White House has been reluctant to send long-range rocket launchers to Ukraine because it is worried about Ukraine using them on the Russian side of the border.
The risk is that Russia would see sending heavier weapons to Ukraine as a provocation that could trigger some kind of revenge against the United States.