Russia says Ukraine attacked country with long-range American missiles

Action took place against the 67th Grau Arsenal (Main Directorate of Missiles and Artillery, in the Russian acronym) in Karatchev, around 150 km from the Ukrainian border. According to reports from military observers heard by Folha de S.Paulo, debris and perhaps one of the missiles hit the arsenal, causing multiple explosions captured on residents’ videos.

Russian Defense Ministry said there was no damage and no casualties reported, according to Folha’s findings. Only one fire would have been caused by the debris of the missile damaged in flight that was defeated, according to the agency. Until now, attacks further away in Russia were common with Ukrainian-made drones, and usually targeted refineries and air bases.

Ukrainian president pressured Washington to allow the use of ATACMS to attack targets inside Russian territory. The acronym in English refers to the Army’s Tactical Missile System, with weapons with a maximum range of 300 km, which would allow Ukraine to reach the logistics infrastructures of the Russian Army and the airports from where planes involved in bombing raids take off.

Russian threat of nuclear attack

Missile attack occurred before the Kremlin released a decree altering Russian nuclear doctrine. The updated document allows Russia to consider a nuclear attack if the country, or its ally Belarus, faces aggression “with the use of conventional weapons that creates a critical threat to its sovereignty and (or) its territorial integrity.”

A day after the US allowed the use of weapons, a Russian official said that Washington’s decision would escalate the conflict. The chairman of the defense committee of the lower house of the Russian Parliament, Andrei Kartapolov, stated on Monday (18) that the decision by Joe Biden’s government is “unprecedented and very important for starting the Third World War”.