ATACMS had been previously used but had been limited to attacks within Ukraine’s former borders- In the areas that rejected Ukraine in the referendum- Crimea, Donbass and Lugansk. The change in policy, from Biden, allows for Ukraine can strike into Russian territory. The most likely intended target is Kursk.
In a major policy shift with two months left in office, the Biden administration will allow Ukraine to use U.S.-produced and donated Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) short-range ballistic missiles deep inside Russia. The missiles, which can hit targets of up to about 190 miles away,
are likely to first be used in Russia’s Kursk region,according to The New York Times, citing U.S. officials. The publication was the first to report the administration’s change of heart.
The policy change was spurred by the presence of North Korean troops fighting in Kursk, the officials said. Ukrainian Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Directorate, told us on Sunday that there are 12,000 North Korean troops now in Kursk. Pyongyang could eventually send 100,000 troops to Russia, Bloomberg reported on Sunday.
To the best of my knowledge there are no North Koreans in Kursk- I’ve not seen any credible information, anywhere that proves this claim to be true. If any of you have please leave a link to read? The latest news on Kursk that I was aware of, was Russia is set to clean house in the area.
Russia has sent about 50,000 troops, including North Koreans, (again, nothing credible that I’m aware of to back that claim) into Kursk to take back territory lost during Ukraine’s three-month-old invasion. It marks the second attempt by Russia to push Ukraine out of Kursk. So far, it appears the Russians have been suffering large losses of personnel and equipment without having cut too deeply into Ukraine’s Kursk salient.
Likely targets for Ukraine include logistics nodes, supply lines, ammunition storage and equipment storage sites and large gatherings of troops, adding additional stresses on Russia’s attempts to dislodge Ukraine before Donald Trump takes office in Janurary. You can see some potential targets in the following map.
All this comes ahead of Trump’s new presidency, which could see aid to Ukraine greatly diminished or cut off. While saying he can quickly end the war, Trump has yet to offer any specifics and it is unclear exactly just how he will deal with the war, especially if a peace deal cannot be reached. You can read more about this in our deep dive here.
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