Ukraine-Russia war live: US-supplied long-range missiles ‘already hitting’ Putin’s forces after secret delivery
Representatives celebrate and wave flags after Congress passes Ukraine aid package
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US-supplied long-range missiles used by Ukraine are “already hitting” Putin’s forces in Crimea under a secret deal secured by Biden earlier this year.
The Army Tactical Missile System, or Atacms, arrived in Ukraine last week under a secret deal agreed in March before the £76bn US security package was passed by congress on Wednesday.
US officials said the weapons had already been used to bomb a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Putin’s troops in another occupied area.
“We did not announce this at the onset in order to maintain operational security for Ukraine at their request,” a US state department spokesperson said.
Wednesday’s bill included £49bn in military aid for Ukraine, which the Pentagon says can start being delivered to the war-torn nation within days.
Meanwhile, the UK was accused of helping Moscow “pay for its war” in Ukraine by importing record amounts of refined oil from countries processing Russian fossil fuels.
British imports of refined oil from India, China and Turkey – which Russia exports crude oil to – amounted to £2.2bn in 2023, up from £434.2m in 2021, according to environmental news website Desmog.
Ukraine to increase long-range strikes in Russia, UK says
Ukraine is set to increase long-range strikes inside Russia with the help of Western military aid, the UK’s defence chief admitted.
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said long-range weapons would help Kyiv shape the war in “much stronger ways” amid the influx of aid.
“As Ukraine gains more capabilities for the long-range fight, its ability to continue deep operations will increasingly become a feature” of the war. They definitely have an effect,” he told the Financial Times.
It comes after US officials said long-range missiles used by Ukraine were “already hitting” Putin’s forces in Crimea under a secret deal secured by Biden earlier this year.
Talks on Ukraine without Russia are pointless, Kremlin says
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that any talks on ending the conflict in Ukraine were pointless without Russian participation, referring to a conference that Switzerland plans to host in June.
Zakharova also told reporters that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s peace formula – which calls for a full withdrawal of Russian forces from all the territory they have captured – does not bring peace closer but prolongs the conflict.
Switzerland announced earlier this month it would host a two-day high-level conference on June 15-16 on achieving peace in Ukraine. Russia has said it will not take part, and the Kremlin has said that the idea of holding peace talks without it was ridiculous.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky met British chancellor of the exchequer Jeremy Hunt in Kyiv ant thanked him for the UK’s aid package.
Writing on X, Zelensky said: “I welcomed the UK’s chancellor of the exchequer, Jeremy Hunt and thanked him for the UK’s largest defense aid package, worth half a billion pounds.
“We paid special attention to the sanction policy. It is important to extend restrictive measures against Russia and make the circumvention of sanctions impossible.
“I thank the people, the Government, the prime minister, and the Parliament of the United Kingdom for their support of Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion. We highly value our countries’ partnership.”
US long-range missiles ‘already hitting’ Putin’s forces under secret deal
US-supplied long-range missiles used by Ukraine are “already hitting” Putin’s forces in Crimea under a secret deal secured by Biden earlier this year.
The Army Tactical Missile System, or Atacms, arrived in Ukraine last week under a secret deal agreed in March before the £76bn US security package was passed by congress on Wednesday.
US officials said the weapons had already been used to bomb a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Putin’s troops in another occupied area.
