Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned NATO alliance leaders that a move to lift restrictions on Ukraine’s use of longer-range Western missiles to strike deep inside his country would be considered an act of war.
“This will mean that NATO countries – the United States and European countries – are at war with Russia.
US officials have previously expressed concerns that allowing Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia could escalate the conflict.
On Tuesday, the bipartisan congressional Ukraine caucus called on Biden to allow Ukraine to strike targets inside Russia with the long-range weapons.
A group of key House Republicans also wrote to the president this week ahead of Blinken’s Ukraine trip, echoing appeals from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to lift the restrictions.
But Putin on Thursday raised doubts as to whether Kyiv could carry out long-range strikes alone, saying “the Ukrainian army is not capable of using cutting-edge high-precision long-range systems supplied by the West” without NATO assistance in targeting.
The US military already does provide intelligence to Ukraine, and has previously assisted in the targeting, although not with the long-range systems currently being considered.
The United States first provided Ukraine with long-range Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles, which have a maximum range of about 180 miles (290 kilometers), in October of 2023.
Kyiv has long called on its Western backers to allow the use of weapons systems that would provide a longer reach inside Russian territory.
To date, Ukraine has used its existing supply of long-range ATACMS to target high-value Russian assets in occupied Crimea, including air defenses, ammo depots and airfields.
Leaders of the NATO alliance have received a warning from Russian President Vladimir Putin that it would be deemed an act of war to remove limitations on Ukraine’s ability to use longer-range Western missiles to strike targets deep inside his territory.
This will imply that the nations of NATO, which include the US and several European nations, are at war with Russia. And if that’s the case, we will respond appropriately to any threats that are posed to us, keeping in mind the shift in the conflict’s fundamental elements, Putin told reporters on Thursday.
Putin’s statements coincide with the growing willingness among US and NATO allies to permit Ukrainian forces to launch strikes against Russian military targets using long-range weapons systems supplied by the West. Kyiv has been vocally advocating for this capability as the war drags into its second year.
The strongest recommendation came from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a recent visit to Kyiv, but the White House was thinking about easing restrictions in accordance with a more general strategic realignment among NATO allies.
“We have evolved and adapted as needs have changed and the battlefield has changed, as you heard me say, and I have no doubt that we’ll continue to do that as this evolves,” Blinken remarked, flanked by British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.
US President Joe Biden has not yet approved the use of longer-range systems, despite the fact that the US has changed its policy to permit limited cross-border strikes into Russia using US-supplied weapons. The US government has previously voiced worries that allowing Ukraine to launch an attack deep within Russia might cause the conflict to worsen.
Congressmen from both parties are putting pressure on Biden to loosen the restrictions at home as Ukraine tries to consolidate its military gains and runs the risk of being pushed back by Russian forces.
The bipartisan congressional Ukraine caucus urged Biden to permit Ukraine to use its long-range weapons to strike targets inside of Russia on Tuesday.
Prior to Blinken’s trip to Ukraine, a number of influential House Republicans also wrote to the president this week, repeating the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky,’s requests that the restrictions be lifted.
On Thursday, however, Putin cast doubt on Kyiv’s ability to launch long-range strikes on its own, stating that “the Ukrainian army is not capable of using cutting-edge high-precision long-range systems supplied by the West” in the absence of NATO targeting support.
The US military has helped with targeting in the past and already provides Ukraine with intelligence, though not using the long-range systems that are being considered at this time.
Ukrainian forces may also have access to commercial satellite imagery and other intelligence resources, depending on the target, according to Dr. Stacie Pettyjohn, Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security.
During a press conference on Thursday, Blinken restated that the US continues to provide military support to Ukraine by providing intelligence to Ukrainian forces. However, he did not address the question of whether the US would share more intelligence with Ukrainian forces.
In response to questions on the potential for escalation, Blinken stated on Wednesday that while they are a factor, it is “certainly not the only factor, and it’s not necessarily a dispositive factor.”. “.
With its purchase of Iranian ballistic missiles, he further charged Russia with escalation.
“If anybody is taking escalatory action, it would appear to be Mr. Putin and Russia, as we have now seen with their acquisition of ballistic missiles from Iran, which will further empower their aggression in Ukraine,” Blinken stated.
Long-range Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles with a maximum range of approximately 180 miles (290 kilometers) were first supplied to Ukraine by the US in October 2023. For a considerable amount of time, Kyiv has been requesting that its Western supporters permit the deployment of weaponry that would extend its reach into Russian territory.
Deep strikes could reach the airfields that Russia uses to attack Ukrainian cities, according to Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, in a recent interview with CNN’s Alex Marquardt. Up until now, Ukraine has targeted high-value Russian assets in occupied Crimea, such as air defenses, ammunition depots, and airfields, using its available supply of long-range ATACMS.
Former US ambassador William Courtney, who is currently an adjunct senior fellow at the RAND Corporation, told CNN that if NATO nations move forward with approving the use of Western weapons for long-range strikes inside Russian territory, this technology could also be used to target close-range ballistic missile (CRBM) systems that have recently entered the country from Iran. A US-made system like ATACMS, he told CNN, “could hit anything at that distance and well beyond” with its meager 75-mile range.
Reporting contributions were made by Michael Callahan, Natasha Bertrand, Oren Liebermann, and Lex Harvey.
