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Ukraine Launches First Attack Inside Russia with U.S.-Supplied ATACMS Missiles
After U.S. officials confirmed that President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles, Bloomberg News reported that the Ukrainian armed forces conducted their first strike in a border area within Russian territory using these long-range missiles, citing the Ukrainian news agency RBC.
In acknowledgment of the attack, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that at 03:25 Moscow time on Tuesday night, a target in the Bryansk region was struck by six ATACMS ballistic missiles.
The ministry stated in a press release that air defense systems shot down five ATACMS missiles over the Bryansk region, while the sixth missile caused damage.
Additionally, it was reported that debris from the ATACMS fell onto the technical area of a military facility in Bryansk, igniting a fire that has since been extinguished.
In response to the Biden administration's allowance for Ukraine to use American-made weapons to target deep within Russia, a document published on the Russian government’s website indicated that President Vladimir Putin approved an update to the nuclear doctrine on Tuesday.
Just weeks before the U.S. presidential elections held this month, Putin ordered changes to the nuclear doctrine to state that any conventional attack on Russia with the assistance of a nuclear power could be considered a joint attack on Russia.
The presidential decree stated, “In order to improve Russia’s state policy in the field of nuclear deterrence, I decide to adopt the (document) ‘Fundamentals of State Policy of the Russian Federation in the Field of Nuclear Deterrence.’”
This decree takes effect from the date it was signed today, November 19.
The updated Russian nuclear doctrine affirms that the state policy in the area of nuclear deterrence has a defensive character and that Russia is making every effort to mitigate nuclear threats, viewing nuclear weapons as a means of deterrence while considering their use as a last resort.
U.S. officials revealed that for the first time, President Joe Biden permitted Ukraine to utilize long-range missiles supplied by the United States to conduct strikes within Russia.
They indicated that these weaponry would likely be used initially against Russian and North Korean forces to defend Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region of western Russia.
They also clarified that the authorization for Ukraine to use the long-range missiles, known as the Army Tactical Missile System or ATACMS, was a response to Russia's unexpected decision to deploy North Korean forces in the conflict, as reported by The New York Times.
