 "Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signs a flag of the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade 'Velykyi Luh' while he visits their command position at a front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, on November 13, 2025. Reuters File")
Ukraine’s military on Tuesday said that it had struck military targets inside Russia using US-supplied ATACMS missiles, calling the operation a “significant development.”
According to a Reuters report, the move marks the first time Ukraine has publicly acknowledged using the advanced US-provided ballistic missile systems against Russian territory, even though the restriction on such strikes was lifted by the outgoing Biden administration a year ago.
“The use of long-range strike capabilities, including systems such as ATACMS, will continue,” Reuters quoted the military general staff as saying in a statement on Tuesday.
Kyiv received the US-supplied systems in 2023 but was initially limited to using them only within its own territory, nearly a fifth of which remains occupied by Russia.
Then-President Joe Biden lifted those restrictions in November 2024, a decision that was initially criticised by his successor, Donald Trump.
Ukraine has also requested US-made Tomahawk missiles, which have a range of 2,500 km (1,550 miles), arguing that they could help pressure Russia into negotiations.
Although Trump briefly considered the idea of providing the missiles to Kyiv, he said in November that he was “not really” pursuing the plan.
With inputs from agencies