The US has secretly sent long-range missiles to Ukraine – NRK Urix – Foreign news and documentaries

The American missiles are of the type Atacms and have a range of 300 kilometers.

They are very accurate and can do a lot of damage to the targets they hit.

The Ukrainian authorities have long asked the US to get such missiles, but the US authorities have been reticent.

They have been concerned that Atacms could be used against Russian territory, and that it could possibly involve the US more directly in the war in Ukraine.

But lately the Americans have sent such missiles secretly to Ukraine.

Unnamed US officials told the AP and Reuters news agencies.

More rockets on the way

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan confirms that a “significant number” of long-range missiles have been sent.

– We will send more now that we have more money. I think they will make a difference, says Sullivan.

He says that Ukraine has committed to using the weapons only on Ukrainian territory occupied by the Russians, not against targets in Russia.

The sources say, however, that the rockets were used for the first time in the morning hours of April 17 against a Russian airbase on the Crimean peninsula, 165 kilometers away. They are said to have been used on two occasions so far.

The ATACMS missiles were part of a $300 million aid package that President Joe Biden approved on March 12.

The Pentagon acquired the ATACMS straight off the assembly line of the weapons manufacturer Lockheed-Martin.

Military experts have previously told NRK that the Russians will have to pull their most important forces and weapons further away from the front line when the Ukrainians get more of these missiles.

Greater range

Last year, Ukraine received a smaller number of missiles of the same type, but these only had half the range of the new missiles.

The military aid package that President Biden signed on Wednesday includes several missiles of this type.

One of the sources says that Russia’s systematic attack on critical infrastructure in Ukraine prompted Biden to approve unanimous recommendations from military leaders and members of his own government in mid-February.

– We warned Russia about this, but they just continued, says the source. Russia used long-range ballistic missiles from North Korea in December and January, despite warnings from the United States

The US hesitated for many months to send long-range missiles to Ukraine. This was based on uncertainty about whether they would be used to hit targets deep inside Russian territory and thus contribute to an escalation of the war.

Risk

The sources say that the White House and military strategists have carefully considered the risks of supplying Ukraine with these missiles and decided that it is appropriate to send such equipment at this time.

Admiral Christopher Grady, deputy chairman of the defense staff, recently said in an interview with the AP that long-range weapons will help Ukraine knock out logistics centers and troop concentrations located some distance behind the front.

Grady would not specify which weapons he was talking about, but he added that such weapons would be very destructive if used properly.