CNN
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Ukraine has fired US-made ATACMS missiles into Russia’s Bryansk region, Russia’s Defense Ministry said, in a major escalation on the 1,000th day of war.
The attack comes just two days after the Biden administration gave Kyiv the green light to use the longer-range American weapons against targets inside Russia.
Kyiv did not immediately respond to the report. The attack would mark the first time Ukraine has used the longer-range American weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia, and show that Kyiv has wasted little time in making use of its newly-granted powers.
At 3:25 a.m. local time (7:25 p.m. ET) Tuesday, Ukraine fired six ballistic missiles at a facility in Bryansk, the ministry said. It said that American-made ATACMS missiles had been used in the attack.
Russian air defenses shot down five of the missiles and another was damaged. Fragments from the damaged missile fell on the territory of a military facility, causing a fire that has since been extinguished. There were no casualties or damage.
On Sunday, US President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use longer-range American missiles inside Russia, ending a months-long prohibition aiming to help Ukraine defend itself while not drastically escalating the conflict.
The decision came at a crucial moment in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia is probing on the frontlines in Ukraine’s east while pummeling its cities with missile and drone strikes, aiming to disable Ukraine’s power grid and weaponize the freezing temperatures for a third consecutive winter.
Meanwhile, thousands of North Korean troops have been deployed to Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian troops launched a daring counteroffensive in the summer.
The decision to allow the 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.
After the reported missile attack early Tuesday morning, President Vladimir Putin updated Russia’s nuclear doctrine – just two days after Biden’s green light.
Under the updated doctrine, Moscow will consider aggression from any non-nuclear state – but with the participation of a nuclear country – a joint attack on Russia.
This story and headline have been updated with additional developments.
