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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| ATACMS have flown. First confirmation of strikes |
| 2024-11-26 |
| Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. [Korrespondent] The White House has confirmed for the first time that restrictions on Ukrainian Armed Forces strikes deep into Russia using ATACMS missiles have been lifted. The talk that the US has given Ukraine permission to strike deep into Russian territory with ATACMS missiles has been going on for several weeks now. And now, during a briefing on Monday, November 25, John Kirby, the White House National Security Council's coordinator for strategic communications, officially confirmed for the first time that Ukraine has received permission to strike Russian territory with long-range ATACMS missiles. IN THE KURSK AREA According to Kirby, the US "has indeed changed the guidance" for the use of ATACMS missiles, and now the Ukrainians "can use them to engage specific types of targets." "Right now they can use ATACMS to defend themselves in an immediate emergency. And right now, it's clear that this is happening in the Kursk area, in the Kursk region," Kirby said. He noted that he would leave it to the Ukrainian side to say "how they use ATACMS, how they define goals, what they use them for and how well they do it." MILITARY AIRPORT Several Russian so-called military bloggers reported an airstrike on the Khalino airbase near Kursk. According to them, the strike was carried out by eight ATACMS missiles, at least two of which exploded on the territory of the airbase. Kursk Region Governor Alexey Smirnov announced on his Telegram channel on Monday night that seven missiles and seven drones had been shot down over the region. The governor did not specify where they were flying. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced on Monday morning that the strikes were carried out at night on targets in the Kursk, Bryansk and Kaluga regions, but it named only one specific target - an oil depot in the Kaluga region. It, as the General Staff announced, was hit, and the consequences of the remaining strikes are being clarified. Before the war, the Khalino airfield near the eastern outskirts of Kursk served both as a military base and as Kursk's civilian airport. According to OSINT analysts, ATACMS missiles hit not only the airfield, but also the positions of the S-400 air defense system, which tried to intercept the attack. PREVIOUS HITS According to media reports, last Tuesday Ukraine struck the Bryansk region with six American-made ATACMS missiles, and the next day used British Storm Shadow systems and American HIMARS to hit targets in the Kursk region. A Russian command post was attacked in Kursk, resulting in casualties. In his televised address, Vladimir Putin said that in response to permission from the United States and its NATO allies to use their long-range weapons to strike Russian territory, Moscow struck a plant in Dnepr with a non-nuclear hypersonic ballistic missile, the Oreshnik. |
| Posted by:badanov |
| #1 He noted that he would leave it to the Ukrainian side to say "how they use ATACMS, how they define goals, what they use them for and how well they do it." Nothing there about targeting,'Kirb.... |
| Posted by: Anomalous Sources 2024-11-26 23:07 |