The Kremlin has accused United States President Joe Biden of escalating the war in Ukraine by allowing Kyiv to use long-range missiles supplied by Washington to strike targets inside Russia.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday said any US decision to allow Ukraine to fire American missiles deep into Russia would mean the US was directly involved in the conflict.
“If such a decision was indeed formulated and brought to the Kyiv regime, then this is a qualitatively new round of tension and a qualitatively new situation from the point of view of US involvement in this conflict,” Peskov said, adding that President Vladimir Putin had made Russia’s position clear in September.
Ukraine has long sought authorisation from Washington to use the powerful Army Tactical Missile System, known by its initials as ATACMS, to hit military installations – and in particular airfields – inside Russia.
Quoting several US officials, The New York Times and the Reuters news agency on Sunday reported Biden had accepted Ukraine’s request. The change in US policy means the weapons can be used 300km (186 miles) deep within Russian territory, putting an estimated 245 military and paramilitary targets within their range, including 16 air bases.
On September 12, Putin said Western approval for such a step would mean “the direct involvement of NATO countries, the United States and European countries in the war in Ukraine” because NATO military infrastructure and personnel would have to be involved in the targeting and firing of the missiles.
“It is obvious that the outgoing administration in Washington intends to take steps to continue adding fuel to the fire and continue to provoke tension around this conflict,” Peskov said.
Putin has yet to comment on the latest development.
At least two Russian legislators also warned that the US move risks another world war.
“I have a great hope that [Donald] Trump will overcome this decision if this has been made because they are seriously risking the start of World War III which is not in anybody’s interest,” said Maria Butina, a member of President Vladimir Putin’s party who was previously convicted of acting as an unregistered foreign agent of Russia within the US.
In an interview with Russia’s state news agency TASS, Vladimir Dzhabarov, first deputy head of the Russian upper house’s international affairs committee, described Biden’s decision as “unprecedented” while also warning of a possible global conflict. Dzhabarov said such an action would receive a swift response.
Samir Puri, a Russia expert at Chatham House, a UK-based think tank, described Biden’s decision as “very significant”. With the US go-ahead, Ukraine could retaliate by targeting the launching areas of those Russian missiles and drones, he said.
“This gives Ukraine an additional lifeline to get through the winter” and survive more Russian attacks, particularly on its power grid, Puri told Al Jazeera.