US President Joe Biden has authorized Ukraine to use long-range American missiles against military targets inside Russia, a US official told AFP on condition of anonymity, confirming media reports.
The New York Times and The Washington Post, citing unnamed sources, said that the major policy shift long demanded by Ukraine was in response to North Korea deploying troops to help Moscow’s war effort.
The US official who spoke to AFP confirmed the reports as accurate.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has consistently pushed for authorisation from Washington to use the powerful Army Tactical Missile System, known by its initials as ATACMS, to hit targets inside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that such a green light would mean that NATO was “at war” with Russia — a threat he has made previously when Ukraine’s backers have escalated their military assistance to Kyiv.
The change in stance from the outgoing Biden administration was sparked by the arrival of North Korean troops in Russia, with Western intelligence reports suggesting around 10,000 are being deployed, the newspapers said.
US officials had previously said they believed the ATACMS missiles would make a limited difference to Ukraine’s campaign and they also wanted to ensure that Washington’s own stocks of the munitions were not depleted.
The American shift is likely to have wider repercussions and lead European allies to review their stances.
The United States and Britain have provided Ukraine with ATACMS and Storm Shadow long-range missiles, respectively.
Germany has refused to supply Ukraine with its Taurus missiles with a range of over 500 kilometres (310 miles) over fears that they could hit Russian territory.
Biden’s decision comes as he prepares to hand over power to President-elect Donald Trump, who has promised to bring the conflict to an end in a negotiation that is expected to force Ukraine to hand over territory.