Biden allows Ukraine to strike inside Russia with long-range missiles

Vocabulary: 328, Words: 666

1US President Joe Biden has given the green light for Ukraine to use long-range missiles supplied by the US to strike Russia, US officials say.

2The move marks a major change in policy for Washington which had refused for months to agree to Kyiv's requests for authorisation to use the ATACMS missiles outside its own borders .

3On Sunday Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted to the news - which came via briefings from US officials - saying "such things are not announced, missiles speak for themselves".

4Russian 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.

5He was yet to comment on the latest development although other senior Kremlin politicians described it as a serious escalation.

6Washington’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.

7In 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.

8Serhiy 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.

9“It’s not something that will change the course of the war, but I think it will make our forces more equal.”

10ATACMS can reach up to 300km (186 miles). 11Unnamed 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.

12Mr 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. 13The offensive was expected within days.

14Ukraine had earlier estimated there to be 11,000 North Korean soldiers in Kursk.

15President Biden’s decision will also finally enable Britain and France to grant Ukraine permission to use long-range Storm Shadow missiles inside Russia.

16Neither the UK nor France has yet responded to Biden's decision.

17Last 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.

18For 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.

19Moscow has also massively increased its number of drone strikes on Ukraine. 20More than 2,000 were launched in October, according to Ukraine’s general staff - a record number in the war.

21Overnight on Saturday, Russia launched what is thought to be its biggest co-ordinated assault in months, killing at least 10 people. 22Around 120 missiles and 90 drones were launched, according to Zelensky.

23Attacks 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.

24Russian officials in the border region of Bryansk reported a Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday night but said its defences had shot down 26 drones.

25Ukraine had for months argued that its allies had not provided the country with enough support to allow it to effectively defend itself.

26Joe Biden, who will leave the White House in January, has been seeking to expedite further aid to Ukraine.

27There are concerns that his successor, Donald Trump, will slow or halt any further support. 28He 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.

29The US has been the greatest supplier of arms to Ukraine. 30Between 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.

from BBC