Biden allows Ukraine to use long-range missiles to strike inside Russia

US president signs off on deploying ATACMS rockets, raising expectations that Britain may authorise similar use of Storm Shadows

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Joe Biden has given approval for Ukraine to strike targets within Russia with US-supplied long-range missiles for the first time.
In a major policy shift just weeks before he stands down, the US president signed off on the use of ATACMS rockets within the Kursk region.
Mr Biden’s decision will raise expectations that he is also set to drop his opposition to the use of British-made Storm Shadow missiles within Russia.
Donald Trump, the incoming president, has vowed to scale back support for Ukraine and has said he will push Kyiv to sue for peace with Moscow.
David Sacks, a close ally of Elon Musk and major donor to the Trump campaign, criticised the decision as anti-democratic.
“President Trump won a clear mandate to end the war in Ukraine. So what does Biden do in his final two months in office? Massively escalate it,” he wrote on X.
Donald Trump Jnr said last night: “The Military Industrial Complex seems to want to make sure they get World War 3 going before my father has a chance to create peace and save lives.”
US officials told The New York Times that Mr Biden had changed his mind after North Korea sent troops to support Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The decision comes after Volodymyr Zelensky spent months urging Britain, the US and France to allow him to use long-range missiles on Russian soil.
In his evening address on Sunday, Mr Zelensky said the missiles would “speak for themselves”.
“Today, many in the media are saying that we have received permission to take appropriate actions,” he said.
“But strikes are not made with words. Such things are not announced.”
Sir Keir Starmer is known to be in favour of the use of Storm Shadow missiles, as is Emmanuel Macron, the French leader. But Mr Biden, who has a veto because the targeting system for the rockets is US-supplied, has until now resisted pressure to give his consent.
Vladimir Dzhabarov, first deputy head of the Russian upper house’s international affairs committee, said Washington’s decision to let Kyiv strike deep into Russia could lead to “World War Three”.
Ukraine captured several settlements in the border region of Kursk in a surprise offensive in August, which it is now defending against Russian counter-attacks.
American officials said that Mr Biden had been persuaded to authorise ATACMS strikes by the intervention of North Korean troops in the war. There have been reports Pyongyang could send up to 100,000 soldiers to support Russia’s invasion, which could tip the balance of the conflict.
US missiles would initially be used to defend Ukrainian positions in Kursk, the New York Times reported.
Mr Biden is said to have been swayed by warnings that Ukrainian forces there would be unable to hold out without extra aerial support.
Kyiv has pleaded for the use of long-range missiles so it can target Russian supply lines and command centres, as well as airbases used to launch jets firing glide bombs at its troops.
The White House has allowed Ukraine to fire US-supplied Himars rockets, which have a 50-mile range, over the border, but it has prevented the use of the 190-mile ATACMS missiles for fear of escalating the war.
Mr Biden’s decision comes just two months before Donald Trump is to take office. Mr Trump, who won a landslide victory in the US election, pledged during the campaign to secure an end to the war on his first day in office.
He has previously said Ukraine should have made concessions to Putin rather than fighting back against the invasion, launched in February 2022.
But he also called the Russian leader earlier this month and urged him not to escalate the conflict further, according to the Washington Post.
Ukraine hopes to swap the territory it holds inside Kursk in any peace deal with Russia. However, analysts close to the Kremlin have said that Putin will not begin negotiations until Ukrainian troops have been ousted from his lands.
Sir Keir will hope that Mr Biden’s decision could unlock the use of Storm Shadow missiles in Ukraine before Mr Trump enters the White House.
Downing Street was on Sunday night waiting for full details of the US decision.
James Cartlidge, the shadow defence secretary, told The Telegraph: “This is a very significant move by the US and one that I very much welcome.
“I hope this will now lead to Ukraine being granted full freedom of operation for all the weapons they’ve been supplied with, including Storm Shadow.
“I’m particularly pleased that the US appear to be responding directly to the supply of thousands of North Korean troops joining the Russian side, confirmed by the US state department this week as being actively engaged in battle in Kursk, a strategic escalation that we have to respond to.”
Asked about the decision on Sunday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the body’s position was “to avoid a permanent deterioration of the war in Ukraine”.
“We want peace, we want fair peace,” Mr Guterres said, not elaborating further.
Mr Biden’s decision will also heap pressure on Germany to drop its opposition to supplying Ukraine with its long-range Taurus missiles, which Mr Zelensky has repeatedly asked for.
The Prime Minister and the outgoing US president are expected to meet in Rio de Janeiro this week as both attend the G20 summit.
Ahead of the meeting, Sir Keir said he was “going to make shoring up support for Ukraine top of my agenda as we go into the G20”.
He warned: “Recently we’ve seen the addition of North Korean troops working with the Russians, which does have serious implications.
“I think on the one hand it shows the desperation of Russia, but it’s got serious implications for European security and for Indo-Pacific security.
“That’s why I think we need to double down on shoring up our support for Ukraine and that’s top of my agenda for the G20.
“There’s got to be full support for as long as it takes and that certainly is top of my agenda, shoring up that further support for Ukraine.”
Sir Keir would not be drawn on the potential use of Storm Shadows within Russia, saying that he was “not going to get into discussing capabilities”.
The Prime Minister said he would use the summit to press allies to keep up support for Ukraine as the invasion reaches its 1,000th day.
“As we mark 1,000 days since Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, I will be doing all I can to bolster Ukraine as they continue to bravely defend their sovereignty,” he said.
“Under my leadership, the UK will be a responsible actor at a time of increasing volatility in the world, while ensuring our diplomacy delivers for people at home.”
He added that he had no intention to speak with Putin, who will not be at the summit, with Russia represented by its foreign minister Sergey Lavrov.
Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, has been heavily criticised after he decided to hold a phone call with the Kremlin leader last week.
Mr Biden’s decision to authorise the use of long-range missiles came just hours after Russia launched one of its largest aerial bombardments of the war.
In an attack lasting several hours, the Kremlin launched about 120 missiles and 90 drones against targets across Ukraine, killing at least nine people.
Mr Zelensky said the assault was aimed at further crippling his country’s energy grid, which has been relentlessly targeted by Moscow.
“The enemy’s target was our energy infrastructure throughout Ukraine,” he said. “Unfortunately, there is damage to objects from hits and falling debris.”
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