Ukrainian defence forces reportedly carried out their first strike in the border regions within Russian territory using Western-supplied ATACMS ballistic missiles. The move came on the 1,000th day of Russia invading Ukraine, after US President Joe Biden’s administration approved Kyiv’s limited use of the weapons to hit targets inside Russia.
As per Ukrainian media reports, the strike targeted a Russian military facility near the city of Karachev in the Bryansk region, located approximately 130 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.
“Indeed, for the first time, we used ATACMS to strike Russian territory. The strike was carried out against a facility in the Bryansk region, and it was successfully hit,” RBC Ukraine reported, citing an official in the nation’s military.
The attack was reportedly carried out on the night of November 19, at the 67th Arsenal of the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Ukraine’s General Staff also confirmed the attack on a facility near Karachev but did not comment on what missiles were used, saying the information is classified.
Till now, Ukraine has been using its homemade drones to attack deep into Russia, but the use of US weapons would be more destructive.
Russia Confirms Use Of ATACMS Missile
Russia on Tuesday confirmed that Ukraine used the long-range ATACMS missiles against its territory and said it marked a “new phase of the Western war” against Moscow, and vowed to react “accordingly.
“This is, of course, a signal that they want to escalate,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, speaking at a G20 press conference in Brazil, said of the strike.
“We will be taking this as a qualitatively new phase of the Western war against Russia. And we will react accordingly,” he added, accusing Washington of helping Kyiv operate the missiles.
Lavrov also urged the West to read a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday that lowers the threshold for when Moscow can use nuclear weapons.
“I hope that they will read this doctrine… in its entirety,” Lavrov said.
Meanwhile, quoting Russian air defence forces, CNN reported that Russia shot down five of the six missiles fired by Ukraine, while another was damaged. Fragments from the damaged weapon reportedly fell on the territory of a military facility, causing a fire that has since been extinguished.
There were reportedly no casualties or damage.
Russia’s Responds To Biden’s Missile Approval
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday approved an updated nuclear doctrine expanding the conditions for using atomic weapons. The decree signed by Mr Putin allows the Russian army to fire nuclear weapons in response to massive conventional attacks on its soil, including those by drones.
“Russia will view aggression against itself or its allies by a non-nuclear state backed by nuclear power as a joint attack,” the document posted online said. That follows a pledge Putin made in September to revise the doctrine.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday stressed that Russia would consider an attack by Kyiv using Western missiles as a strike by a non-nuclear state supported by a nuclear power.
“It [the Fundamentals of Russia’s State Nuclear Deterrence Policy] also stipulates that the Russian Federation reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in case of aggression with the use of conventional weapons against it and (or) the Republic of Belarus as a member of the Union State that create a critical threat to their sovereignty and (or) their territorial integrity,” Peskov said according to the state-run Tass news service.
Earlier, Russia warned the US and its European allies against allowing Ukraine to strike deep inside its territory using Western long-range high-precision weapons. Mr Putin has the the move would bring them into direct conflict with his country.
Russia has long asserted that the Army Tactical Missile System, known by its initials ATACMS, is programmed by US specialists and requires guidance from American satellites.
