Ukraine Steps Up Fight Against Russia by Using U.S.-Made Missiles for the First Time

The Ukraine-Russia war has escalated.

On the 1,000th day of the war, Ukraine launched US-made ATACMS missiles across the border into Russian territory for the first time.

The missiles struck a Russian weapons arsenal in the Bryansk region, marking a major escalation in the ongoing war and raising tensions between Moscow, Kyiv, and Washington.

The strike, which occurred at 3:25 a.m. local time on Tuesday, involved six ballistic missiles targeting a military facility, according to Russia’s Defense Ministry.

Russian intercepted five of the missiles and damaged another but fragments from the strike caused a fire on the site. Moscow claimed there were no casualties or significant damage, but this changes a lot.

This strike came just two days after the Biden administration granted Ukraine approval to use the long-range ATACMS weapons against Russian targets. Until now, Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied weapons has been largely confined to defending its own territory.

The decision to provide Kyiv with ATACMS, which have a range of up to 190 miles, shows a shift in the United States’ approach to supporting Ukraine.