Just three days ago, on August 21, on Truth Donald Trump took the opportunity to once again attack the Biden administration's handling of the war in Ukraine : “He has only allowed Ukraine to defend itself and not to fight back. It is impossible to win a war like this.” Read like this, his words suggest that in his place the tycoon would have provided his ally with greater freedom and more powerful weapons. But an investigation by the Wall Street Journal reveals the opposite: for months the Pentagon has been preventing Kiev from using US long-range missiles to strike targets on Russian soil, limiting Ukraine's offensive capabilities in the war against Moscow. After a few hours, Volodymyr Zelensky's
reply arrived: “Ukraine has used its weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia and is not consulting with Washington about it.”Official sources contacted by the financial daily explained that there is an internal approval mechanism, not publicly announced, that requires final authorization from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth before allowing the use of the tactical Atacms missiles with a range of approximately 300 kilometers. At least one Ukrainian request to strike a target in Russia has already been rejected, the sources added. The veto also affects the use of other long-range systems, such as the British Storm Shadow cruise missiles, which rely on targeting data provided by the United States.
Meanwhile, Washington has approved a new $850 million military aid package, largely funded by European partners, which includes 3,350 long-range air-to-surface Eram missiles. These weapons, which are expected to arrive in Ukraine within six weeks, will also require Pentagon authorization before deployment. Kiev, meanwhile, continues to develop its own long-range strike capabilities, such as drones and the new cruise missile called Flamingo, expected to be in production by early next year.
