 "In this pool photograph distributed by Russian state owned Sputnik agency President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting on situation in Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk regions following an invasion of Ukrainian troops in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict, via video link at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow on August 22, 2024. AFP File")
Days after US President Joe Biden authorised the usage of long-range US weapons for strikes inside Russia and Ukrainian military subsequently used it to target a facility in the Bryansk region overnight, Russia on Tuesday said that it shot five US-made ATACMS missiles , the debris of which landed in the region.
According to The Guardian report_,_ citing Russia’s state-owned news agency Tass, the debris fell on a military facility in the Bryansk region and it caused a small fire.
The attack resulted in no casualties or damage, added the report, citing Russia’s ministry of defence.
According to The Guardian report, the claims have not been independently verified. Ukraine has not commented on the Russian reports, and there has been no confirmation from US or other allied powers, it added.
Meanwhile, Russia said that Ukraine’s latest attack against its territory marked a “new phase of the Western war” against Moscow, and vowed to react “accordingly.”
“We will be taking this as a qualitatively new phase of the Western war against Russia. And we will react accordingly,” AFP quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as telling a press conference at the G20 summit in Brazil, accusing Washington of helping Kyiv operate the missiles.
The Biden administration granted Ukraine permission to use long-range missiles to strike targets in Russia’s Kursk region, a move long sought by Ukraine.
The region has seen incursions by Ukrainian forces and the deployment of allied North Korean troops by Russia.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsOvernight, Ukrainian forces claimed to have successfully hit a Russian logistics center near Karachev in Russia’s Bryansk region, triggering multiple explosions.
“Indeed, for the first time, we used ATACMS to strike Russian territory. The strike was carried out against a facility in the Bryansk region, and it was successfully hit,” The RBC Ukraine news agency quoted a source as saying.
For months, Biden had refused to allow Ukraine such strikes over concerns of escalation, but Russia roping in as many as 10,000 North Korean soldiers changed Biden’s mind, according to The Daily Telegraph.
The newspaper reported that Biden saw the deployment of North Korea in Russia’s war on Ukraine as an escalation that necessitated the permission for such long-range missiles’ usage inside Russia.
With inputs from agencies