The lifting of a restriction on the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) will reportedly apply initially to the Russian region of Kursk, where Ukrainian forces have held territory since an August surprise, and where some 10,000 North Korean troops have been deployed to bolster Russian counter-attacks.
Biden officials would not publicly confirm Monday the new policy, but pointed to North Korea’s involvement as an escalation by Moscow.
Prominent figures in Trump’s orbit suggested the move was meant to complicate the incoming president’s push to end the war.
Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.), Trump’s pick for national security adviser, told Fox News on Monday that Biden’s ATACMS lift is “another step up the escalation ladder.”
“And nobody knows where this is going,” he said. “Trump is talking grand strategy here. How do we get both sides to the table to end this war, what’s the framework for the deal, and who’s sitting at that table.”
“The Military Industrial Complex seems to want to make sure they get World War 3 going before my father has a chance to create peace and save lives,” Donald Trump Jr. wrote on X Sunday, responding to reports about the policy change.
The Kremlin on Monday accused Biden of adding “fuel to the fire” in Ukraine, and pointed to previous remarks from Putin, who warned in September that any nuclear-armed nation approving the use of such missiles in Russia would be declaring war with his country.
“This would in a significant way change the very nature of the conflict,” Putin said in September.
Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh dismissed concerns of escalation, pointing to North Korean troop deployments as already a major increase in hostilities.
“North Korea entering this war makes them co-belligerents with Russia, and we’re talking about North Korean soldiers being used to take sovereign territory, Ukraine’s sovereign territory,” she told reporters in a Monday briefing.
ATACMS are long-range missiles that can be fired from systems like the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) and reach targets up to 190 miles away. They are much more accurate and lethal than the long-range drones that Ukraine has used to target deep into Russia.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
