Donald Trump has authorized Ukraine to deploy specific long-range missiles provided by Western allies following the cancellation of a planned meeting with Vladimir Putin. This decision lifts a crucial restriction, granting Kyiv the capability to target deep into Russian territory and exert pressure on the Kremlin, as confirmed by US officials on Wednesday.
Recently, Ukraine launched British-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles at a chemical plant in Russia’s Bryansk region. The Ukrainian General Staff of the Armed Forces announced the strike as a successful operation on social media, emphasizing the plant’s role in producing materials used by the enemy to attack Ukrainian territory.
The authority to approve such attacks was shifted from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to General Alexus Grynkewich, the top US military commander in Europe and also the NATO commander, as reported by The Wall Street Journal. This change allowed for the attack using UK-manufactured missiles to coincide with European leaders, including PM Keir Starmer, pledging to escalate economic and defense industry pressure on Russia until a peace agreement is reached with Putin.
Efforts to arrange talks between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Budapest fell through, with Trump expressing his reluctance to waste time on an unproductive meeting. Trump has been advocating for negotiations with Putin to end the conflict since early October, and he previously hinted at the possibility of supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles during a recent trip to Israel.
Despite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s push for stronger military support, particularly for US-made Tomahawk missiles, Trump has refrained from pursuing this option to avoid escalating tensions with Moscow. The Storm Shadow missile, a joint British-French weapon, can be launched from Ukrainian aircraft with a range exceeding 180 miles. However, the US retains control over Ukraine’s use of these missiles due to their reliance on American targeting data.