Russia previously warned that if NATO allowed Ukraine to strike inside the country, it would be considered direct involvement in the war.
Anonymous U.S. officials have said that President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to use long-range missiles provided by the United States to strike targets in the Russian region of Kursk, which is currently occupied by Ukraine in the ongoing war.
Ukrainian forces launched a significant cross-border operation into Russia’s region of Kursk earlier this year. Intense fighting is ongoing as Russian forces attempt to reclaim lost territory. Ukraine seized several settlements and is still holding strategic positions. In response, Russia has allowed 11,000 North Korean soldiers to amass in Kursk to aid its fight.
Last year, after North Korea supplied Russia with long-range ballistic missiles, the Biden administration responded by greenlighting Ukraine’s use of the long-range Army Tactical Missile System—with a range of about 190 miles—for targets within its territories, including in Russian-occupied Crimea.
The latest decision to allow Ukraine to expand its use of U.S. missiles comes in Biden’s last two months in office. According to the unnamed officials who talked to The New York Times, while the missiles are intended to support Ukraine’s fight in Kursk, Biden could authorize their use elsewhere in Russia.
They said that they do not believe the permission to use the missiles will significantly change the outcome of the war.
The officials said that Biden decided to lift the restrictions for Kursk, in part, because he believes the United States needs a strong response to Russia’s employment of North Korean troops on its frontlines. The president was also concerned that Ukrainian forces could be overwhelmed without using the missiles, they said.
The officials and others knowledgeable about the matter were not authorized to discuss the decision publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, The Associated Press reported on Nov. 17.
The White House declined The Epoch Times’ request for comment.
Rep. Marilyn Strickland (D-D.C.) told NTD, a sister outlet of The Epoch Times, that the approval “was a policy that was necessary.”
“As always, we don’t want to escalate but Ukraine’s our partner,” she said. “We have to stand with them. They have to be able to defend themselves.”
By Melanie Sun
