The Ukrainian military is believed to have received only around 50 ATACMS missiles from the US so far, The Times reported on Tuesday, while noting that the Pentagon has not publicly released any figures on the controversial weapons shipment.
According to the British newspaper, Ukraine’s military forces have “plenty” of HIMARS and MLRS systems that are able to fire the long-range missiles, the first of which were sent to Kiev within months of the escalation of the conflict with Russia in 2022.
The newspaper highlighted, however, that with a limited supply of ATACMS missiles, military commanders in Kiev will have to “choose carefully when they select targets inside Russia.”
On Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that Ukraine had launched six long-range ATACMS missiles into the border region of Bryansk, and that five were intercepted by air defense systems, while another was damaged and hit the ground near a military base.
The White House had considered whether to authorize Kiev's use of US-supplied long-range missiles for strikes deep into Russia for more than two years. On Sunday, the New York Times reported, citing unnamed American officials, that outgoing US President Joe Biden had removed the restrictions on use of the weapons.
The news was later confirmed by the EU’s outgoing foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky claimed that several other Western countries had followed suit, and given Kiev permission to use their long-range missiles against internationally recognized Russian territory.
On Monday, US Deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Finer evaded questions from reporters about Biden’s authorization, saying he was not “confirming any decisions that have or have not been made about US assistance” when it comes to operational issues.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that such a step would change the nature of the Ukraine conflict, making NATO a direct participant. The head of state has also updated Russia’s nuclear doctrine to allow a strategic response to a conventional attack by the proxy of a nuclear power.