Washington has given authorization to Ukraine to strike Russian territory with long-range missiles supplied by the United States, an American official told AFP on Sunday.
The United States “has given the green light to the use of long-range missiles,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. President Joe Biden thus accedes to a long-standing request from kyiv shortly before his departure from the White House and the return of Donald Trump, very critical of American aid to Ukraine.
The missiles should initially be used in the Russian border region of Kursk, where North Korean soldiers have been deployed in support of Russian troops, according to the New York Times, which cites American officials speaking on condition of anonymity. . Ukraine has repeatedly asked its Western allies for authorization to strike Russian territory in depth with long-range missiles. But several countries, including the United States, have until now refused to give such a green light, for fear of an escalation with Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that such a decision would mean that “NATO countries are at war with Russia.” In his campaign to return to the White House, Donald Trump was not shy in criticizing the tens of billions of dollars released for Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
The president-elect, who will take office on January 20, promised to resolve this conflict “in 24 hours”, without ever explaining how. Ukraine fears a weakening of American support, at a time when its troops are in difficulty on the front, or that an agreement involving territorial concessions to Russia will be imposed on it.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday cautiously welcomed reports that Washington was authorizing kyiv to strike Russian territory with the long-range missiles it supplies, contenting himself with noting that these weapons “will speak for themselves.”
