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00:00First, the Kremlin has today accused US President Joe Biden of escalating the war in Ukraine
00:13in the wake of his decision to allow Kiev to use long-range American-made missiles deep
00:19inside of Russia. A Russian MP has said the green light means the US is now directly involved
00:26in the conflict. The news came as Russian ballistic missiles hit the city of Sumy, killing
00:3211 people, among them two children. In the latest Russian attack today, a missile hit
00:39an apartment block in Odessa. Eight people there have been killed as well.
00:45Morgan Eyre has our first report.
00:49Ukraine has been lobbying Washington for years to be able to use American weapons to strike
00:54further inside Russia. Finally, it seems the US has given Kiev a green light.
01:00The New York Times and other media report that information based on comments from US
01:05officials.
01:06The missiles are known as the Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATAKMS. They have a maximum
01:11range of 300 kilometres and can reach further into Russian territory than other weapons
01:17in the Ukrainian arsenal.
01:19American officials suggest it's likely they will be used in Russia's Kursk region. This
01:23would bolster Ukraine against Russian and North Korean troops.
01:28President Vladimir Putin previously said that such a step would mean the direct involvement
01:32of NATO countries in the war.
01:36President Volodymyr Zelensky did not confirm nor deny they were granted approval for these
01:40long-range missiles to strike inside Russia.
01:44Today, there's a lot of talk in the media about us receiving permission for respective
01:50actions. But strikes are not carried out with words. Such things are not announced.
01:58Missiles will speak for themselves. They certainly will.
02:04It's been suggested by experts and the media that Moscow will have already begun moving
02:08some of its resources outside of the Kursk region in anticipation of the decision. Some
02:13experts believe while it will aid Kiev, it's not going to tilt the balance significantly.
02:19I think this will certainly help the Ukrainians, but I don't think it's going to be decisive
02:23for the direction of the war. My guess is that the Biden administration wants Putin
02:28and he wants the North Koreans to understand that there are costs to escalation.
02:34It comes too as Russian forces advance steadily in the east of Ukraine. And with Donald Trump's
02:39return to the White House, raising fears of the future of US support for Kiev.
02:45Let's bring you some more analysis on this story now and speak live to Philip Ingram.
02:50He's a journalist that specialises in security and he's a former British military intelligence
02:56officer as well. Good to talk to you today.
02:58Good afternoon.
03:00Good afternoon. Look, first of all, what targets in Russia is Ukraine likely to be able to
03:07hit as a result of this green light from Washington?
03:11Well, these weapons will allow Ukraine to hit targets much deeper into Russia and there
03:17will be logistic concentrations, so ammunition dumps. There will be concentrations of troops,
03:22so training areas and accommodation where they're starting to come together to prepare
03:27to move forward to the front line. Concentrations of military vehicles, military equipments,
03:33including repair sites, which they want as close to the front line as possible, but far
03:38enough back that Ukrainian artillery can't currently hit them. And of course, if there
03:42are any airfields and other areas that are within range, they'll be hit. But also some
03:47of the sites that are being used to launch the Shahad 136 drone attacks that we're seeing
03:52being launched against Ukrainian critical infrastructure, especially their power infrastructure.
03:57So this will impact the Russians in quite a way. But as your previous commentator said,
04:04it's not going to be completely decisive.
04:07We know Volodymyr Zelensky has been pushing for this green light for months now. Do you
04:12think this can tangibly make an impact for Ukraine on the battlefield? Because we have
04:18seen, haven't we, over the course of several months, Russia slowly making progress and
04:24Ukraine appearing increasingly outgunned. So is this something that really could turn
04:29things around?
04:31It will help. Anything that increases the range that Russian capability can be attacked
04:37at is going to help enormously. The minute the Russians can have their vehicle repair
04:42sites very, very close to the front line outside of Ukrainian artillery range, but knowing
04:47safe that they're in safe places because the international community is not allowing the
04:51Ukrainians to use long range weapons. That has now changed and that will have an impact
04:55on the battlefield. But it's bringing all of these together. So I hope this is just
04:59the first step and then the authorisation for the French Scalpe, which is the British
05:06storm shadow missile that's made jointly by France and the UK, authorisation for that
05:12to be used against targets inside Russia. And by bringing all of these together, that
05:17will then have a more decisive impact than one weapon system alone.
05:21I suppose the big question, though, today is Russia's response. There's already been
05:27a suggestion in Moscow that this is viewed there as the United States becoming a direct
05:33participant in the war. How serious is that?
05:35Well, you know, as we've seen with all of the red lines that there have been every time
05:40they crossed, Vladimir Putin does nothing. You will get more rhetoric coming out. This
05:44is the typical sort of rhetoric that he'll put out. We might see a bit of nuclear threatening
05:50and sabre rattling. We might see an increase in the attacks into Ukraine itself with drones
05:56and missiles for a short period of time until Russia runs out of ammunition. But Putin really
06:01doesn't know how to respond to this. And that's a big part of his problem. Putin is suffering.
06:07So the more we can increase that suffering, the more he's on the back foot and Ukrainians
06:12can get the initiative back again. They've lost it tactically on the front line, but
06:17they still retain it at the operational level. And conflicts are not always won with tactical
06:22battles.
06:23What are your thoughts then on whether this might encourage countries in Europe, the United
06:28Kingdom to follow Washington's lead now?
06:30Well, I think it should do. I think it's been the Americans that have been holding certainly
06:36the UK and France back from allowing the Storm Shadow, Scalp missile from being used because
06:42there's American guidance systems that are needed in this. I do hope it will allow the
06:46Germans to authorise the use of the Taurus missile. But then German domestic politics
06:52has just been thrown into difficulty with the virtual collapse of the government. So
06:57that may delay any decisions that are there. And other European nations I think will hopefully
07:03follow suit.
07:04Philip Ingram talking to us today live from London. Thank you very much indeed.