Amid fears of potential “Russian missile attacks on the mainland,” the United States and the United Kingdom are reportedly considering lifting the restrictions on the range of attacks in response to Russia acquiring ballistic missiles from Iran. Russia has quickly pushed back, issuing a warning message of escalation.
On the 11th (local time), during a joint press conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken stated that discussions covered a wide range of topics, including long-range shelling, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky present. Blinken mentioned that he will report back to President Biden upon returning to Washington. British Foreign Secretary David Raab, who also attended the meeting, is expected to report the relevant contents to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and stated that, “Our superiors (the U.S. President and the British Prime Minister) will meet in Washington this Friday to discuss the matter.”
A decision on lifting the mainland attack restrictions could be made during the U.S.-UK summit on the 13th. President Zelensky urged once again for the release of usage restrictions, stating that “much of Ukraine’s ‘victory plan’ depends on the United States and allies.”
While the West had refrained from allowing the use of the weapons supplied to Ukraine on Russian soil to prevent escalation, their stance has shifted due to Russia’s significant supply of ballistic missiles from Iran. The United States confirmed that Iran sent hundreds of ballistic missiles to Russia in early September and announced additional sanctions related to this issue. Europe is also considering sanctions such as blocking Russian natural gas imports via Ukraine.
If the restrictions on weapon use are lifted, it is expected that Ukraine’s offensive, which has already deployed ground troops into Russia, will accelerate. This is because Ukraine will be able to directly strike key Russian military facilities in the rear. The maximum ranges of the U.S.-supplied ground-to-ground missile ‘ATACMS’ and the European-supplied air-to-ground missile ‘Storm Shadow’ are 305 km and 250 km, respectively.
However, the actual lifting of restrictions could lead to an uncontrollable escalation of the war. Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the Russian State Duma, warned that if the West allows long-range weapons to be used from Ukraine to the Russian mainland, both the United States and its allies would be considered as belligerents. In the worst-case scenario, there is also the risk of Russia playing the “nuclear card.” Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously stated that he would use nuclear weapons if Russia’s sovereignty and territory were threatened.
[Kim Sang-jun, Reporter]