Joe Biden says US will not supply Ukraine rocket weapons capable of hitting Russia

On Monday, US President Joe Biden stated that the United States will not provide Ukraine with long-range missile weapons capable of striking Russian territory. However, Biden did not specify which long-range rocket systems the United States had decided against sending. Ukraine, on the other hand, has stated that long-range weapons are the most pressing request it has made to its allies.

Last week, some reports stated that the United States was preparing to sanction the shipment of MLRS rocket launchers to Ukraine, which have a maximum range of more than 180 miles. It's unclear whether Biden's response will allow such a transfer to take place to Ukraine, according to media reports. The White House has not commented on the situation yet.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy requested two specific types of long-range weapons from the West during the G7 leaders summit earlier this month. He stated that Ukraine needs to get all the armaments and defensive equipment it needs to resist tyranny, referring to the M142 HIMARS and M270 MLRS multiple launch rocket systems.

The MGM-140 ATACMS, with a range of 190 miles, is one of the many long-range missile systems available in the United States. Ukraine's military warned last week that it urgently needs "NATO-style MLRS" weapons to counter Russian advances.

The US attempting to leave little imprint in efforts to assist Ukraine

To avoid direct confrontation with Russia, the US is reportedly attempting to leave a little imprint in its efforts to assist Ukraine in defeating the Russian Federation. Deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council and a former Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev reportedly stated on Monday that Biden made his statement on long-range weapons because he knew Russia would retaliate.

He stated that the Russian forces would have followed through on their promise and struck at the heart of these heinous acts and that there's no need to explain what would have happened next.

In the US' efforts to arm Ukraine, officials have been debating how far they can deliver weaponry without prompting Moscow to accuse the US of escalating the conflict. Officials are said to have advocated lowering the risk by only supplying Ukraine with shorter-range rockets with an effective range of roughly 50 miles in the case of long-range rocket systems.

Image: AP