U.S. intelligence officials believe that Russia could respond with lethal force if the Biden administration permits Ukraine to use Western-supplied weapons to strike deep within Russian territory, according to a report from The New York Times on Thursday.
This warning comes amid President Vladimir Putin’s recent announcement of plans to revise Russia’s nuclear weapons doctrine. The Kremlin has portrayed this move as a clear signal to the West. Under the proposed changes, Moscow would treat any attack by a non-nuclear state backed by nuclear power as a joint attack by both.
According to the NYT report, Russia may escalate covert sabotage and arson operations across Europe and potentially launch lethal attacks on U.S. and European military bases if President Joe Biden authorizes Ukraine to use long-range missiles to strike deeper into Russian territory.
Additionally, Moscow is reportedly in secret talks, mediated by Iran, to provide anti-ship cruise missiles to Yemen’s Houthi militias, according to recent media reports.
Some senior advisers within the Biden administration reportedly share the concerns raised by intelligence officials, particularly after Putin’s recent “especially bellicose” statements. Earlier this month, Putin warned that allowing Ukraine to use long-range weapons to hit Russian targets could bring the West to the brink of war with Russia.
The NYT report indicates that U.S. officials are carefully weighing the “potential risks and uncertain rewards” of allowing deeper strikes. Some are skeptical that the limited number of long-range missiles would significantly impact Ukraine’s war efforts, given its ongoing struggle against Russia’s advancing forces in the eastern Donetsk region.
U.S. intelligence also anticipates that Moscow would likely move key military assets, such as ammunition depots and command posts, beyond the missiles’ range, which can extend up to 190 miles (300 kilometers).
Ukraine has already used Western-supplied missiles to target Russian military positions in and around Crimea, a region Kyiv is determined to reclaim following Russia’s 2014 annexation of the peninsula.
