PUSHING THE START OF WW3

Kiev fires ATACMS missiles at Russia’s Bryansk Region – MOD

Air defenses have intercepted five US-made projectiles and damaged another, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has said

The Ukrainian military has launched multiple US-made ATACMS missiles at Russia’s Bryansk Region, some of which have been intercepted, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on Tuesday.

US President Joe Biden reportedly authorized the use of donated American weapons for strikes deep inside Russia last week. Moscow had previously said that long-range strikes with Western weapons would constitute a direct war between NATO and Russia.

According to a statement from the Defense Ministry, Kiev fired six long-range ballistic missiles identified as ATACMS early on Tuesday morning. Five were intercepted, while another one was damaged and hit the ground at a Russian military site in Bryansk Region. The Russian military said no damage had been caused by the incident.

https://www.rt.com/russia/607877-bryansk-long-range-strike/

>>22015358

PUSHING FOR WW3

Trump’s security chief nominee blasts Biden’s Ukraine missile ‘escalation’

The move is not helping the US president-elect end the conflict, Mike Waltz has said

Allowing Kiev to use US-supplied long-range weapons against Russia will only escalate the conflict that President-elect Donald Trump is trying to end, the incoming White House national security adviser, Mike Waltz, has said.

The New York Times reported on Sunday that US President Joe Biden had given Ukraine permission to use ATACMS missiles against Russian territory. Washington has neither confirmed nor denied the anonymously sourced claim.

Waltz, a former Green Beret and Florida congressman tapped by Trump to serve as his top aide, told Fox News on Monday that he was not briefed on the move by the outgoing administration, as he normally would be by tradition.

“It’s another step up the escalation ladder,” Waltz told Fox host Brian Kilmeade. “And nobody knows where this is going. North Korea is unleashing ballistic missiles, artillery, now tens of thousands of soldiers. The administration responds by lifting this restriction. North Korea sends more soldiers. South Korea is now saying it may get engaged…”

Ukraine has accused the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea of sending weapons and thousands of troops to aid Russia. Washington has accepted this claim at face value.

“So this is a development, but it’s a tactical one,” Waltz added. “President Trump is talking grand strategy here. How do we get both sides to the table to end this war? What’s the framework for a deal, and who’s sitting at that table?”

Trump is putting together an “all-star team” that will consider the broader strategic issues and the ways to “we drive this war to an end,” Waltz said.

The Republican president-elect campaigned on ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict, saying he would try to do so even before his January 20 inauguration. Many of his prominent backers have denounced Sunday’s rumored move by the outgoing President Joe Biden as an attempt to make any peace deal more difficult.

Under Biden, the US has provided over $64 billion worth of weapons, ammunition and equipment to Ukraine to support Vladimir Zelensky’s war effort against Russia. Washington placed certain restrictions on the use of such weapons, and Zelensky has spent months demanding the lifting of the limitations, as part of his “victory plan.”

Moscow has repeatedly warned the US and its allies that any such move would amount to their open involvement in the hostilities. Russian President Vladimir Putin has pointed out that Kiev lacks the capability to use long-range missiles without NATO satellites and military personnel to develop targeting and firing solutions. It was not a matter of the US “giving permission” to Ukraine, but crossing the threshold of direct involvement, Putin told reporters in September.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova acknowledged on Monday that reports of Biden’s decision were still unconfirmed, but added that if Kiev actually used US missiles in such a way, Moscow’s response would be “adequate and tangible.”

https://www.rt.com/news/607849-biden-missile-escalaion-waltz/

>>22015368

Even NATO is against it…

NATO state blasts ‘senseless’ Biden missile U-turn

The US allowing Ukraine to attack Russia isn’t helping, Slovakia’s Robert Fico has said

Lifting restrictions on Ukraine’s use of US-supplied long-range missiles against targets deep into Russian territory is senseless and counterproductive, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said.

Biden has reportedly removed the restrictions on Ukraine’s use of ATACMS missiles, according to a New York Times report on Sunday. The White House has made no official statements.

“This is an unprecedented escalation of tensions,” Fico said on Monday, calling it an attempt to negatively affect the policies of US President-elect Donald Trump and “frustrate and delay” any peace talks.

Fico added that he was surprised by the speed with which some EU member states welcomed the reported move.

“This is simply a confirmation that the European Union is not capable of formulating fundamental foreign policy positions on its own, and that the West wants the war in Ukraine to continue at any cost,” the Slovak PM said.

Slovak Defense Minister Robert Kalinak and Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar have been instructed to “oppose this American decision on any world forum,” Fico noted.

Bratislava “strongly disagrees” with the US decision, viewing it as a “senseless” move that threatens Slovakia’s national interests, according to Fico. As Ukraine’s neighbor, Slovakia wants to see the conflict end as soon as possible.

READ MORE: Zelensky ‘afraid war will end’ – EU state’s PM

President Vladimir Putin warned in September that the use of Western weapons on Russia’s internationally recognised territory would “significantly change the nature of the conflict.” According to Putin, it would mean that “NATO countries are directly involved in the military conflict” with Russia, as their personnel would have to be involved in the targeting process.

Slovakia is a member of both the EU and NATO, but Fico has dissented from the policy of both blocs regarding their unconditional support for Kiev, and has joined neighboring Hungary’s calls for a ceasefire and peace instead.

https://www.rt.com/russia/607837-slovakia-atacms-strike-escalation/