Biden authorizes Ukraine to use long-range US weapons in Russia

President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to use powerful long-range American weapons inside Russia, according to a senior US official familiar with the decision, as North Korean troops deploy in support of Moscow’s effort.

The decision comes as Russia has deployed nearly 50,000 troops to Kursk, the southern Russian region where Kyiv launched its surprise counteroffensive in the summer, to prepare to take back territory.

Thousands of North Korean troops have deployed to Kursk as part of the offensive, sparking concern from Biden and his advisers that their entry could lead to a dangerous new phase in the war.

The decision to allow use of the Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, inside Russia had been under consideration for months. American officials had been divided on the wisdom of allowing the new capability. Some had concerns about escalating the war, while others worried about dwindling stockpiles of the weapons.

The US refused to even provide ATACMS to Ukraine for the first two years of the war, in part because of readiness concerns as the powerful missiles require time and complex components to produce. But Biden secretly approved the transfer of the long-range ATACMS missiles in February for use inside Ukrainian territory, and the US delivered the missiles in April.

Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky had been pressing Washington to allow use of the weapons inside Russia, too, arguing he needed the capability to gain momentum in his war effort.

When Biden and Zelensky last met at the White House in September, the Ukrainian leader came with a detailed list of targets inside Russia that he wanted to hit with US-provided long-range missiles, according to sources familiar with the meeting...

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/17/politics/biden-authorizes-ukraine-missiles-russian-targets/index.html