By John Ismay and Ephrat Livni
For the first instance, U.S. officials have stated that the Biden administration has given the green light for Ukraine to use American-supplied ballistic missiles for strikes within Russia, representing a significant change in policy.
The missiles, recognized as Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS (pronounced “attack ’ems”), are expected to be initially deployed against Russian and North Korean forces to back Ukrainian troops in the Kursk area of western Russia, according to U.S. sources.
Ukraine has been advocating for authorization from the United States for numerous years, and this comes during the concluding months of the Biden administration. President-elect Donald Trump has indicated he will pursue a swift conclusion to the conflict in Ukraine.
What capabilities do these missiles have?
ATACMS, produced by Lockheed Martin, are short-range ballistic missiles capable of hitting targets up to 190 miles away, depending on the specific model with a warhead containing approximately 375 pounds of explosives. These missiles ascend much higher into the atmosphere compared to artillery rockets and can travel significantly farther, returning to ground at extremely high speeds due to gravitational force.
They can be launched from the HIMARS mobile platforms supplied by the United States to Ukraine, in addition to older M270 launchers provided by Britain and Germany.
ATACMS are frequently labeled as “long-range missiles,” although this is a relative term. They can extend deeper into Russian territory than any other missile Ukraine possesses but can’t reach as far as a cruise missile or an intercontinental ballistic missile.
Developed in the 1980s to target critical Soviet installations deep behind enemy lines, the ATACMS missile was designed as a unique guided weapon during a period when the United States predominantly utilized “dumb bombs” and other unguided munitions.
Currently, the Pentagon holds two variants of ATACMS in its arsenal — one as a cluster munition and another with a single explosive payload.
What caused the U.S. to delay?
The question of arming Ukraine with ATACMS has been a delicate issue since Russia commenced its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. From the early stages of the conflict, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has advocated for weaponry capable of reaching deeper into territories controlled by Russia and ultimately into Russia itself.
The U.S. delivered ATACMS to Ukraine last year, yet the Biden administration had up until now refrained from authorizing their deployment against targets across the Russian border.
The White House expressed concerns that Ukraine’s use of these missiles to hit targets inside Russia could provoke retaliation from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We’re attempting to prevent World War III,” President Joe Biden has remarked.
Certain Pentagon officials had also been against supplying these missiles to Ukrainians due to the limited stock available.
Zelenskyy contends that such weaponry is vital for his nation’s capability to initiate a broader counteroffensive and has maintained that he has no intention of targeting Russian urban areas or civilians.
On Sunday, during a nighttime address, he insinuated that the restrictions from the U.S. had been lifted without explicitly confirming it, stating: “Such matters aren’t publicly announced. The rockets will demonstrate their significance.”
How does Ukraine plan to utilize them?
The Russian military is gearing up for a significant assault involving around 50,000 troops, including North Korean personnel, targeting entrenched Ukrainian positions in Kursk with the objective of reclaiming all the territory that Ukrainian forces captured in August.
The Ukrainians could deploy the ATACMS to hit concentrations of Russian and North Korean troops, critical military assets, supply hubs, munitions depots, and logistical routes deep within Russia. This could assist the Ukrainians in diminishing the efficacy of the Russian-North Korean counteroffensive.
Last year, Biden consented to provide several hundred ATACMS for deployment in regions of Ukraine held by Russia, including the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula. Therefore, it remains uncertain how many missiles are still available in the Ukrainian arsenal for use in the Kursk area.
Has the U.S. ever employed them in combat?
Indeed. The U.S. military utilized approximately 30 ATACMS in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm, as per government records. These missiles were deployed to target Iraq’s medium-range ballistic missile launchers and air defense missile locations.
The initial versions of these cluster munitions could reach targets up to 100 miles away. Once they arrived at their target zone, they released 950 submunitions.
The Army also deployed over 400 bomblet-firing tactical missiles during Operation Iraqi Freedom, as documented by government records, particularly during the early hours of the 2003 invasion.
Subsequently, the Pentagon imposed restrictions on the deployment of cluster munitions due to their tendency to malfunction, leaving behind hazardous duds that posed threats to soldiers and civilians after hostilities ceased. The Army refurbished many of the early ATACMS in the 2000s, substituting the bomblets with a single explosive warhead.
