Italy is one of the EU countries that regularly provide military assistance to Ukraine. In this framework, it handed over about 20 M109L self-propelled howitzers. It appears that a train loaded with them reached its destination on Saturday, April 15. The Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera recalls that several M109L self-propelled guns were already transferred to Ukraine back in October 2022.
Information about sending a batch of self-propelled guns to Ukraine was confirmed by Italian Minister Luca Chiriani on the air of the RAi news24 TV channel. He added that their shipment was approved by the previous government of Mario Draghi. Let us recall that in January of this year, the Italian government decided to continue to provide military assistance to Ukraine, and in February the Cabinet of Ministers approved the sixth package of military assistance to Kyiv, the contents of which are still classified.
The M109L is a development of the American M109 155mm tracked self-propelled howitzer made in Italy by Otobreda Division, Alenia Difesa. The first batch of 32 155 mm M109Ls was completed in 1986 and final deliveries were made in 1992. The M109L 155 is no longer in service with the Italian army but an undisclosed number of these artillery howitzers are stored. The M109L was upgraded with a 39-caliber long-barrel version to replace the original 23-caliber barrel of the American M109. The new cannon is able to fire FH-70 projectiles to a maximum range of 24,000 m. The M109L can also fire assisted ammunition at a maximum range of 30 km.