WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — The White House rejected the Kremlin’s claim Monday that it is adding “fuel to the fire” by authorizing Ukrainian forces to use U.S.-supplied missiles inside Russia.
“The fire was lit by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” deputy national security advisor Jon Finer, said. “So, I think this notion of fuel on the fire is, frankly, a side issue to the main issue, which is Russia waging a war of aggression across a sovereign border, into Ukraine, and continuing to do so.”
“I would put the question back to Russia about who’s actually putting fuel on the fire here, and I don’t think it’s the Ukrainians,” Finer said.
President Joe Biden has given Kyiv the green light to use long-range weapons – known as Army Tactical Missile Systems or ATACMS – which would enable strikes deep inside Russian territory, easing previous restrictions on Western-made weapons.
What does Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to use longer-range US weapons mean?
The announcement came Sunday after the U.S. had frequently said it would not lift its ban on Ukraine’s use of American weapons against Russia, citing fear of escalation. The United States has provided Ukraine with more than $56 billion in military aid since Russia’s invasion in Feb. 2022, according to the Department of Defense.
With two months left in office, Biden’s shift in U.S. policy came in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin deploying more than 10,000 North Korean troops into Moscow’s fight.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov criticized the Biden administration for “adding fuel to the conflict,” before recalling Putin’s statement in September in which he said that Ukraine’s use of U.S. weapons to attack Russia would put NATO at war with Moscow.
“If this decision is taken, it will mean nothing less than the direct involvement of NATO countries, the United States and European countries in the war in Ukraine,” Putin said at the time. “This will be their direct participation, and this, of course, will significantly change the very essence, the very nature of the conflict.”
President-elect Donald Trump has not commented on Biden’s decision, but his son, Donald Trump Jr., lambasted it.
“The Military Industrial Complex seems to want to make sure they get World War 3 going before my father has a chance to create peace and save lives,” he wrote on X.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that he could resolve the war between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours without specifying how.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky seemingly agreed with this Friday, saying he is certain his country’s war with Russia would end “faster” once Trump becomes U.S. president.
