The Polish military-industrial complex will participate in the production of the American HIMARS artillery system, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak said at a briefing during a visit to the Lockheed Martin concern’s plant in the United States.
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According to him, he discussed the issue of joint production of HIMARS with the leadership of Lockheed Martin.
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“After negotiations with the board of Lockheed Martin, I heard assurances about the readiness to cooperate with the Polish military-industrial complex, about the readiness to strengthen the Polish defense industry, which is also beneficial for the United States, because it will create an opportunity to increase production volumes, if we talk about HIMARS “Blashak said.
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As the Polish Minister of Defense noted, already this year a “HIMARS center” will appear in Poland, which will become “a hub for the maintenance and production of HIMARS not only for the needs of Poland, but also for European countries.”
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Blaszczak also announced negotiations on the possibility of producing Javelin anti-tank missile systems in Poland and expressed interest in purchasing missiles for HIMARS with a range of up to 500 kilometers.
In 2019, Poland bought 20 HIMARS systems with 18 combat launchers and two training launchers for $414 million. According to Blaschak, the first copies will arrive this year.
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In February of this year, Poland expressed a desire to buy another 500 such systems, and the US government responded positively to the Polish request, agreeing to sell 484 launchers, including 18 on American vehicles, and install the rest on Polish trucks. Also in February, it became known that the US Congress agreed to the sale of nearly 500 HIMARS to Poland. The maximum order value is $10 billion.
The HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) multiple launch rocket system was developed in the USA by BAE Systems and Lockheed Martin in 1996-2000 and has been produced since 2003. Created on the basis of a three-axle wheeled chassis FMTV of the US Army, it can carry six rockets or one ATACMS operational-tactical ballistic missile, the effective firing range for certain types of ammunition is up to 80 kilometers.
