Ukraine Seeks US Green Light for ATACMS to Hold Kursk and Press Moscow

The Ukrainian leadership has approached the US for permission to use ATACMS to target Russian territory after the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) conducted an incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast. This could allow Kyiv to hold the territory they have pushed into, according to The Washington Post, citing an anonymous advisor to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The long-range missiles are planned to be used to strike Russian military airfields from which Russian aircraft conduct bombing raids on Ukrainian positions. According to the source, such a political decision would help the AFU maintain control over parts of the Kursk Oblast.

“This will give them the leverage they need for negotiations with Russia – this is what it’s all about,” the advisor to Zelensky said.

The advisor reported that within three days of the operation in Kursk Oblast, Ukrainian forces captured approximately 100 square kilometers of territory and took hundreds of Russian soldiers prisoner. They also control the Sudzha gas measuring station used by Gazprom to supply fuel to Europe.

He noted that compared to previous raids – which were mainly carried out by volunteers, most of whom were Russians – Ukraine deployed significantly more troops this time.

According to Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov, the offensive might involve about 1,000 soldiers from elite assault brigades equipped with Western armored vehicles and tanks. This indicates a substantial strengthening of forces. However, it’s important to consider that such operations may involve certain risks and require careful planning to achieve maximum effect.

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Initial reports said the parents of the 22-year-old suspect live in occupied territories in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region and he was recruited remotely by a Russian intelligence officer in Crimea.

The Russian military leadership was surprised by the unexpected march of Ukrainian forces into Kursk Oblast. Gerasimov promised Russian President Vladimir Putin to recapture Kursk Oblast after losing dozens of villages and the key Gazprom station.

“The operation will be completed with the defeat of the enemy and reaching the state border,” said the Russian general.

Despite the Russian Ministry of Defense’s deployment of reserves to Kursk Oblast, Ukrainian forces have managed to continue their offensive.

Some military analysts believe the next target for Ukrainian forces might be the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. The plant, which supplies energy to 19 regions of the Central Federal District, is about 30 km away. Currently, the plant is guarded only by women, according to the Vazhnyye Istorii Telegram channel, citing a plant worker. According to him, the plant’s management has no plan in case of an attack, and employees have not been instructed on what to do next.