US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin declined to supply Ukraine with ATACMS tactical missile systems ahead of other customers, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing two US officials and an adviser from the Ukrainian government.
Austin rejected a recent request by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to prioritise Kyiv to bypass other buyers for ATACMS deliveries because Washington has long-standing agreements with other customers.
The matter of permission to strike Russian territories with ATACMS missiles has been at the forefront of the Ukrainian president’s efforts, but allies have not reached a consensus on whether the military can use the supplied weapons to strike Russia.
The Ukrainian president has been seeking to have these restrictions lifted. In particular, he raised this issue at a meeting with Austin in the Ukrainian capital on 21 October. However, Austin stated that the Ukrainian military would not be able to strike Russian Air and Space Forces bases with long-range ATACMS missiles.
US President Joe Biden is reportedly planning to give Ukraine billions of dollars in security assistance before he leaves office in January, hoping to strengthen the government in Kyiv before Donald Trump returns to the White House.
The rush comes as Trump, who won Tuesday’s election, criticised the extent of US military and financial support for Ukraine and pledged to quickly end the war with Russia, without specifying exactly how. His stance on Ukraine has raised concerns about Washington’s future support for Ukraine’s war with Russia at a time when the White House, Senate and possibly the House of Representatives are controlled by Republicans.
According to the latest data from the US State Department, the United States has so far supplied Ukraine with more than $64.1 billion in military aid since the conflict between Ukraine and Russia broke out in 2022.
