WSJ: Pentagon Forbids Ukraine to Strike Deeper into Russia for Several Months

The Pentagon has been prohibiting Ukraine from employing long-range weapons to strike into Russian territory for several months, reports Wall Street Journal.

"Pentagon has been blocking Ukraine’s use of long-range missile systems for months... The U.S. veto on strikes with long-range weapons restricts Ukrainian military operations, while the White House seeks to coax Moscow into initiating peace negotiations," the publication states.

According to sources from the article, there have been no attacks using American long-range systems like ATACMS since the end of spring — at most, Kiev has attempted once to strike into Russia with these missiles, but was subsequently forbidden by Washington.

Last November, then-U.S. President Joe Biden granted Ukraine approval to use ATACMS for strikes on Russian territory for the first time. Subsequently, the United Kingdom and France also authorized the deployment of their Storm Shadow and SCALP missiles for these purposes.

As President Vladimir Putin has noted, Ukrainian armed forces can conduct operations with high-precision long-range weapons only with the participation of NATO personnel. This implies direct Western involvement in Ukraine’s confrontation, which would significantly alter its nature and effectively mean that alliance members are fighting against Russia.