Joe Biden is resisting pressure to allow American long-range missiles to be used inside Russian territory, despite plans to let Ukraine fire Britain’s Storm Shadows.
The US president is set to agree for Ukraine to fire British-made Storm Shadows inside Russia with the assistance of American targeting technology.
But the Biden administration is concerned that doing the same for ATACMS missiles, manufactured in the US, could escalate the wars in both Ukraine and the Middle East.
Mr Biden is meeting Sir Keir Starmer in Washington DC on Friday. They will discuss lifting a ban on the use of Storm Shadows outside Ukraine that has been in place since they were first supplied to Volodymyr Zelensky in May last year.
Ukraine argues that allowing the missiles to be fired into Russian territory would allow it to disrupt Vladimir Putin’s supply lines, and could target Russian glide bombers used to attack Ukrainian forces on the front line.
The ATACMS missile, which has a range of 190 miles, would give Ukraine similar firepower and more resources for its Russian offensive.
American officials believe the calculus over both missiles has changed after Iran shipped long-range weapons to Russia. Asked about the issue on Tuesday, Mr Biden said: “We are working that out right now.”
On a visit to Kyiv on Wednesday, Antony Blinken, the US Secretary of State, said he had discussed the missiles and would “take that discussion back to Washington to brief the president”.
However, intelligence sources told the New York Times that Mr Biden is unlikely to give permission for Ukraine to use both Storm Shadows and ATACMS yet amid concerns about escalation by Putin.
After the Storm Shadows approval, a further decision on ATACMS could take weeks.
US intelligence suggests that allowing American-made missiles to be fired on Russian targets could prompt the Kremlin to step up its support for Iran and its proxies in the Middle East, which are engaged in an ongoing conflict with Israel.
It could also escalate the conflict in Ukraine, where both sides are locked in battle over territory in the eastern Donbas region.
On Thursday, Putin said allowing Western weapons to be used inside Russia would bring Nato into direct conflict with Russia.
“We are not talking about allowing or not allowing the Ukrainian regime to strike Russia with these weapons,” he said. “We are talking about deciding whether Nato countries are directly involved in the military conflict or not.”
The use of long-range missiles is the latest debate over Western support for Ukraine, following similar discussions over the supply of Himars artillery, M1 Abrams tanks and F-16 fighter jets.
While the UK has been willing to allow Storm Shadows to be used in Russia for some weeks, the decision has been held up by Mr Biden’s resistance to Ukraine using American targeting systems alongside the missiles.
Germany, which has a large supply of similar Taurus missiles, has declined calls for it to send its own supplies, which defence sources believe would significantly boost Ukraine’s war-fighting ability.
Ben Wallace, the former defence secretary, told The Telegraph long-range missiles would allow Ukraine to “layer its defence” to cover Russian attacks between 30km and 300km from the front line.
“It is a mystery to me why countries that say they want Ukraine to win, such as Germany and America, often end up in this tug of war for capabilities,” he said. “We all know where this will end, and it’s best just to get on with it.
“Delay always benefits Russia. If we are serious about Ukraine, we must make sure we remove from Russia’s grasp every factor that helps Putin now.”
On Friday, Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, reiterated Berlin’s refusal to send long-range missiles to Ukraine. Speaking at a press conference, he said: “Germany has made a clear decision about what we will do and what we will not do. This decision will not change.”
Asked earlier Friday about the talks in Washington, Steffen Hebestreit, Mr Scholz’s spokesman, said that “the weapons the US and Britain are now discussing” have a longer range than anything Germany had supplied.
Boris Pistorius, the German defence minister, said that what the US and Britain agreed “remains their business”, and added that allowing Ukraine to strike targets in Russia would be “fully in line with international law”.
Germany has been the second-largest contributor of military aid to Ukraine after the US, but plans to halve its budget for that aid next year.
Mr Scholz has been facing domestic pressure over the issue, with parties opposed to support for Kyiv making major gains at key regional elections in early September. However, the government has insisted it is “fully committed” to supporting Ukraine “for as long as necessary”.
The post Biden resists calls to let Ukraine fire US missiles in Russia despite Storm Shadows plan appeared first on The Telegraph.
