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| DATE | 2024-11-17 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [Hangout - NYLXS] To the Brink...
|
Biden allows Ukraine to strike inside Russia with missiles
4 hours ago
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Paul Adams
BBC Diplomatic correspondent
Reporting fromDnipro
Kathryn Armstrong
BBC News
Reporting fromLondon
White Sands Missile Range An Army Tactical Missile System is tested
White Sands Missile Range
Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) can reach up to 300km (186 miles)
and are tough to intercept due to their high speed
US President Joe Biden has given the green light for Ukraine to use
long-range missiles supplied by the US to strike Russia.
A US official has confirmed the move, a major change of US policy, to
the BBC's US partner CBS.
For months, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has been urging that
the restrictions on the missiles, known as ATACMS, be lifted - allowing
Kyiv to strike outside its own borders.
On Sunday he reacted to the reports, saying "such things are not
announced, missiles speak for themselves".
Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously warned Western nations
against such a move, saying it would represent the Nato military
alliance's "direct participation" in the Ukraine war.
He was yet to comment on Sunday's reports although other senior Kremlin
politicians described it as a serious escalation.
Washington’s decision on ATACMS is couched in terms of being limited to
the defence of Ukrainian forces inside Russia's Kursk region, where Kyiv
launched a surprise incursion in August.
In effect, the Biden administration is telling Ukraine that it will
support its efforts to hold onto the small chunk of Russian territory it
currently occupies, as a powerful bargaining chip for any possible
negotiations in the future.
Ukraine in maps: Tracking the war with Russia
Serhiy Kuzan, chairman of the Kyiv-based Ukrainian Security and
Cooperation Centre, told the BBC that Joe Biden's decision was "very
important" to the country.
“It’s not something that will change the course of the war, but I think
it will make our forces more equal.”
ATACMS can reach up to 300km (186 miles). Unnamed US officials have told
the New York Times and the Washington Post that Biden's approval of
Ukraine's use of the ATACMS came in response to Russia's decision to
allow North Korean soldiers to fight in Ukraine.
Mr Kuzan said Sunday's decision had come ahead of what was an expected
assault by Russian and Korean troops, designed to dislodge Ukrainian
forces from Russia's Kursk region. The offensive was expected within days.
Ukraine had earlier estimated there to be 11,000 North Korean soldiers
in Kursk.
President Biden’s decision will also finally enable Britain and France
to grant Ukraine permission to use long-range Storm Shadow missiles
inside Russia.
Neither the UK nor France has yet responded to Biden's decision.
EPA Volodymyr Zelensky and Joe Biden EPA
Zelensky (left) has been urging Joe Biden (right) to allow Ukraine to
use its long-range missiles inside Russia for months
Last month, Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine had used US-supplied
long-range missiles for the first time to strike Russian targets in the
country's east.
For months, Ukraine has been battling to push back Russian troops who
have been slowly advancing in the eastern Donetsk region towards the key
city of Pokrovsk - a major supply hub for Ukrainian forces.
Moscow has also massively increased its number of drone strikes on
Ukraine. More than 2,000 were launched in October, according to
Ukraine’s general staff - a record number in the war.
Overnight on Saturday, Russia launched what is thought to be its biggest
co-ordinated assault in months, killing at least 10 people. Around 120
missiles and 90 drones were launched, according to Zelensky.
Attacks continued on Sunday evening, with officials in Sumy region -
near the Russian border - reporting another eight killed, including two
children, after a missile hit a residential building.
Russian officials in the border region of Bryansk reported a Ukrainian
drone attack on Sunday night but said its defences had shot down 26 drones.
Ukraine had for months argued that its allies had not provided the
country with enough support to allow it to effectively defend itself.
Joe Biden, who will leave the White House in January, has been seeking
to expedite further aid to Ukraine.
There are concerns that his successor, Donald Trump, will slow or halt
any further support. He has described the military support as a drain on
US resources and has signalled he will end the war, without explaining
how this would happen.
The US has been the greatest supplier of arms to Ukraine. Between the
start of the war and the end of June 2024, it delivered or committed to
send weapons and equipment worth $55.5bn (£41.5bn), according to the
Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German research organisation.
Zelensky says war will 'end sooner' with Trump as president
--
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