Russia accuses Biden of escalating Ukraine war with missile decision
Al Jazeera
Kremlin says any US decision to allow Ukraine to fire American missiles deep into Russia would mean direct US involvement in the conflict.
The Kremlin has accused United States President Joe Biden of escalating the war in Ukraine by allowing Kyiv to use long-range missiles supplied by Washington to strike targets inside Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday said any US decision to allow Ukraine to fire American missiles deep into Russia would mean the US was directly involved in the conflict.
“If such a decision was indeed formulated and brought to the Kyiv regime, then this is a qualitatively new round of tension and a qualitatively new situation from the point of view of US involvement in this conflict,” Peskov said, adding that President Vladimir Putin had made Russia’s position clear in September.
Ukraine has long sought authorisation from Washington to use the powerful Army Tactical Missile System, known by its initials as ATACMS, to hit military installations – and in particular airfields – inside Russia.
Quoting several US officials, The New York Times and the Reuters news agency on Sunday reported Biden had accepted Ukraine’s request. The change in US policy means the weapons can be used 300km (186 miles) deep within Russian territory, putting an estimated 245 military and paramilitary targets within their range, including 16 air bases.
