ATACMS: How long-range missiles striking Russia could affect Ukraine war

Vocabulary: 425, Words: 1030

1US officials say President Biden has given the green light for Ukraine to use long range missiles supplied by Washington to strike deep inside Russia.

2Washington had previously refused to allow such strikes with US-made ATACMS missiles because it feared they would escalate the war.

3The major policy reversal comes two months before President Joe Biden hands over power to Donald Trump, whose election has raised fears over the future of US support for Kyiv.

4Why has the US allowed Ukraine use long-range missiles inside Russia?

5Ukraine has been using the Army Tactical Missile System, more commonly known as ATACMS, on Russian targets in occupied Ukrainian territory for more than a year.

6But the US has never allowed Kyiv to use the missiles inside Russia – until now.

7The Lockheed Martin ballistic missiles are some of the most powerful so far provided to Ukraine, capable of travelling up to 300km (186 miles).

8Ukraine had argued that not being allowed to use such weapons inside Russia was like being asked to fight with one hand tied behind its back.

9The change in policy reportedly comes in response to the recent deployment of North Korean troops to support Russia in the Kursk border region, where Ukraine has occupied territory since August.

10Also, Donald Trump’s imminent return to the White House is raising fears over the future of US support for Ukraine, and President Biden is apparently keen to do all he can to help in the little time he has left in office.

11Strengthening Ukraine's hand militarily – so the thinking goes - could grant Ukraine leverage in any peace talks that may lie ahead.

12Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has not yet confirmed the move. 13But he said on Sunday: "Strikes are not made with words ... 14The missiles will speak for themselves."

15What effect will the missiles have on the battlefield?

16Ukraine will now be able to strike targets inside Russia, most likely at first around the Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces hold over 1,000 sq km of territory.

17Ukrainian and US officials expect a counter-offensive by Russian and North Korean troops to regain territory in Kursk.

18Ukraine may use ATACMS to defend against the assault, targeting Russian positions including military bases, infrastructure and ammunition storage.

19The supply of the missiles will probably not be enough to turn the tide of the war. 20Russian military equipment, such as jets, has already been moved to airfields further inside Russia in anticipation of such a decision.

21But the weapons may grant Ukraine some advantage at a time when Russian troops have been gaining ground in the country's east and morale is low.

22"I don't think it will be decisive," a Western diplomat in Kyiv told the BBC, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.

23"However, it’s an overdue symbolic decision to raise the stakes and demonstrate military support to Ukraine.

24"It can raise the war cost for Russia."

25There are also questions over how much ammunition will be provided, said Evelyn Farkas, who served as deputy assistant secretary of defence in the Obama administration.

26"The question is, of course, how many missiles do they have? 27We have heard that the Pentagon has warned there aren’t that many of these missiles that they can make available to Ukraine."

28Farkas added that the ATACMS could have a "positive psychological impact" in Ukraine if they are used to strike targets such as the Kerch Bridge, which links Crimea to mainland Russia.

29The US authorisation will also have a further knock-on effect: potentially enabling the UK and France to grant Ukraine permission to use Storm Shadow missiles inside Russia. 30Storm Shadow is a Franco-British long-range cruise missile with similar capabilities to the American ATACMS.

31Could it lead to escalation of the war?

32The Biden administration had for months refused to authorise Ukraine to hit Russia with long-range missiles, fearing escalation of the conflict.

33Vladimir Putin has warned against allowing Western weapons to be used to hit Russia, saying Moscow would view that as the “direct participation” of Nato countries in the war in Ukraine.

34“It would substantially change the very essence, the nature of the conflict,” Putin said in September. 35“This will mean that Nato countries, the USA and European states, are fighting with Russia.”

36Russia has set out “red lines” before. 37Some, including providing modern battle tanks and fighter jets to Ukraine, have since been crossed without triggering a direct war between Russia and Nato.

38Kurt Volker, a former US ambassador to Nato, said: “By restricting the range of Ukraine’s use of American weapons, the US was unjustifiably imposing unilateral restrictions on Ukraine’s self-defence."

39He added that the decision to limit the use of ATACMS was "completely arbitrary and done out of fear of ‘provoking’ Russia."

40“However, it is a mistake to make such a change public, as it gives Russia advance notice of potential Ukrainian strikes.”

41How will Donald Trump react?

42The move comes just two months before Donald Trump returns to the White House.

43He has already said he intends to bring the war in Ukraine to a swift end – without specifying how he plans to do it – and he could cancel the use of the missiles once he takes office.

44President-elect Trump has not yet said whether he would continue the policy, but some of his closest allies have already criticised it.

45Donald Trump Jr, Trump's son, wrote on social media: "The military industrial complex seems to want to make sure they get World War Three going before my father has a chance to create peace and save lives."

46Many of Trump's top officials, such as Vice President-elect JD Vance, say the US should not provide any more military aid to Ukraine.

47But others in the next Trump administration hold a different view. 48National Security Adviser Michael Waltz has argued that the US could accelerate weapons deliveries to Ukraine to force Russia to negotiate.

49Which way the president-elect will go is unclear. 50But many in Ukraine fear that he will cut off weapons deliveries, including ATACMS.

51"We are worried. 52We hope that [Trump] will not reverse [the decision]," Oleksiy Goncharenko, a Ukrainian MP, told the BBC.

from BBC