Ukraine has fired six U.S.-made Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) into Russia, marking the first use of such weapons in the ongoing conflict, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. The missiles were reportedly launched into the Bryansk region. Russian air defense systems allegedly intercepted five of the missiles mid-flight and damaged a sixth, causing a small ground fire but no reported injuries.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that if the reports are true, the decision would lead to a “new spiral of tensions” with Washington. He referred to President Vladimir Putin‘s comments in September, where he argued that Ukraine’s military was incapable of deploying sophisticated long-range weapons without direct input from NATO specialists. Putin concluded that this would mean that NATO countries, including the United States and European countries, are at war with Russia.
On the same day as the reported Ukrainian strikes, Putin signed a decree updating Russia’s nuclear doctrine, expanding its options for carrying out a nuclear strike. The new doctrine would consider a conventional-weapons attack by a nonnuclear state that’s supported by a nuclear-armed nation as a joint attack on Russia that could meet the conditions for a nuclear response. This appears to send a warning to Ukraine, the United States, and other nuclear-armed backers.
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