US President Joe Biden, who will leave the White House in January, has authorized Ukraine to use US-supplied long-range missiles against targets on Russian territory, The New York Times (NYT) news website wrote today, citing US officials. Reuters also came up with similar information just a moment later, citing its own sources.
The White House declined to comment on the matter, the agency added. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy did not confirm the news, but he did not deny it either. In a telegram post, he noted that such things are not announced, but the missiles speak for themselves.
According to the NYT, the weapons will most likely be used against Russian and North Korean soldiers in order to support Ukrainian troops in western Russia’s Kursk region. According to Reuters sources, Ukraine plans to carry out the first strikes against Russia with long-range missiles in the coming days. However, the sources did not disclose the details due to security concerns.
In August, the Ukrainian army surprisingly penetrated the Russian Kursk region and occupied hundreds of square kilometers of Russian territory. According to the media, Kiev hoped, among other things, to use this offensive to force Moscow to move troops from the east of Ukraine and thus slow down the Russian advance there.
The decision to end the Biden administration comes roughly two months before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on January 20 next year. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been asking Biden for months for permission to use American weapons against Russian military targets far from the Ukrainian border.
The decision also comes after North Korean troops began taking part in an attempt by Russian forces to regain control of territory occupied by Ukrainian troops in August in Russia’s Kursk region, raising concerns in both Kiev and Washington.
The first Ukrainian strikes are likely to be carried out by US ATACMS missiles, which have a range of approximately 300 kilometers, Reuters sources said.
While some US officials have expressed doubts about whether the long-range missiles will change the course of the war, the current decision could put Kiev in a better negotiating position if ceasefire talks begin, Reuters wrote. According to NYT sources, Biden’s move is also intended to send a message to North Korea that its troops are in a vulnerable position in Russia and that it should not send more.
In an evening post on the Telegram social network, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine’s plan for winning the war with Russia also includes the ability of its army to conduct strikes using long-range missiles. “Today, many media are reporting that we have received permission to take the appropriate steps. But the strikes are not carried out verbally. Such things are not announced. The missiles will speak for themselves. They will,” he noted.
It is unclear whether Trump will revoke Biden’s current clearance when he takes office. Nevertheless, Trump has long criticized the amount of American financial and military aid to Ukraine and claims that he will end the war quickly, although he did not specify how.
Biden began easing restrictions on the deployment of U.S. weapons on Russian soil after Russia launched a cross-border attack in May targeting Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. To help the Ukrainians defend Kharkiv, Biden authorized them to use HIMARS salvo rocket launchers, which have a range of about 80 kilometers, against Russian forces just across the border. However, ATACMS did not allow them to use long-range missiles in this defense of Kharkiv, the NYT reported.
Source: www.tyden.cz
