Ukraine is reducing number of strikes on Russia with ATACMS missiles due to depletion of their stockpiles - NYT
Ukraine is limiting the use of ATACMS missiles on Russian territory due to the depletion of their stocks and a possible change in US President-elect Donald Trump's policy of authorizing strikes deep into Russia.
The New York Times writes about this with reference to American officials, Censor.NET informs.
The publication notes that in the spring when the United States decided to provide Ukraine with ATACMS, about 500 such missiles were transferred to Kyiv from the Pentagon's warehouses.
Although Ukraine could not use these missiles against Russia, they were used to hit targets in the occupied territories, including Crimea.
After the administration of US President Joe Biden granted Ukraine permission to use US ATACMS deep into Russia in mid-November, Ukraine was left with only "dozens" of such missiles, probably about 50.
Citing two U.S. officials, the newspaper writes that there was virtually no possibility of obtaining more ATACMS, as the limited U.S. supplies were already earmarked for deployment in the Middle East and Asia.
The United Kingdom, which after Biden's decision also allowed Ukraine to use its long-range Storm Shadow missiles in Russia, recently stated that its stocks of these missiles are also extremely limited.
The NYT notes that after receiving permission from the United States and the United Kingdom, Ukraine has used at least 31 more ATACMS missiles and 14 more Storm Shadows. In particular, analysts call the November 20 Storm Shadows attack on a Russian command post near the village of Marino in Kursk region the most successful strike.
The next day, on November 21, Russia struck the Dnipro River with a new Oreshnik ballistic missile, and six days later, Russian Chief of Staff General Valery Gerasimov called the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Brown to "discuss concerns about the escalation."
According to the publication, after this call, which took place on November 27, Ukraine did not launch ATACMS and Storm Shadows for two weeks.
The NYT, citing analysts, notes that Ukraine may have slowed down its use of missiles because it initially aimed them at Russian targets that it had long wanted to hit. Therefore, now that there are few missiles left, Ukraine is using them more moderately.
The publication also adds that there is little hope that Donald Trump will fill the missile shortage, given his criticism of Biden's decision to allow Ukraine to conduct long-range strikes deep into Russia.
Earlier it was reported that the United States had authorized Ukraine to use ATACMS long-range ballistic missiles to strike targets in Russia.
