The reinforcement and modernization of the artillery of the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) continues, while the concerns of the northern neighbor increase, in particular with the reception of the PULS rocket launcher system (Precise and Universal Launch System) from Elbit Systems.
With each new acquisition by the FAR or the arrival of a new order in Morocco, certain Spanish media, in addition to the political parties and officials, panic and try, often implicitly, to draw attention to the threat that weighs on their security, listing the characteristics and advantages of the Moroccan acquisition while recalling similar previous orders to try to prove the “dangerousness” of Morocco’s armament.
This is also the case of the specialized Spanish site Defensa, which devoted an entire article to the PULS rocket launcher from the Israeli company Elbit Systems, which Morocco received in mid-May.
According to Defensa, a video was made public on May 19, illustrating the operation of the PULS within the Royal Armed Forces during an exercise, with three launchers, an ammunition vehicle and a mobile command post, on 6 trucks ×6 from the Czech company Tatra and camouflage similar to other FAR vehicles. ” The same camouflage is used for the French CAESAR gun, which appeared in one of the videos while traveling through Morocco“, indicates the same source.
This system, continues Defensa, has already been presented by Escribano M&E and Expal to FEINDEF for the Spanish army’s High Mobility Rocket Launcher System (SILAM) program.
And to add: If the battery is already deployed in Morocco, it must be assumed that the acquisition was made some time ago and in all discretion“, noting that this assumes that Morocco has a precise long-range attack capability, sooner than expected. ” In recent years, Morocco has significantly and rapidly developed its artillery arsenal“, recalled the specialized site.
And just like the rest of the media, Defensa lists all the advantages and features of the new acquisition in great detail: Elbit Systems’ PULS rocket launchers are rocket launchers capable of firing a wide range of rockets and guided missiles , and the system can neutralize specific targets accurately and effectively at all ranges.
These are, by the way, GPS-guided missiles and the INS inertial navigation system can be fired. It can fire 36 122mm Accular missiles with a range of 35km, or 20 160mm Accular missiles with a range of 40km, or 8 Extra missiles with a range of 150km, or 4 Predator tactical ballistic missiles Hawk with a range of 300 km.
Of course, the specialized site does not forget to mention that Morocco already has 36 Chinese PHL-03 / AR-2 300 mm rocket launchers capable of firing 12 rockets from a variety of conventional and cluster bombs. with a range of up to 160 km.
The Kingdom has also operated since 1966 36 BM-21 rocket launchers that it obtained from Romania, and can fire 21 rockets with a range of 14 km, but which had to be replaced in “emergency”, according to Defensa, by a modern and precise system for the Moroccan artillery.
The northern neighbor knows very well that Morocco cannot pose a military threat to Spain and what is happening now, that is to say the acquisitions and the reinforcement of the arsenal, is only a question of regional military and political balances. Moreover, Rabat, which has never ceased to express its determination to guarantee the stability and security of the region, has multiplied its gestures in this direction.