Ukraine-Russia war latest: Fury in Moscow as Biden allows Kyiv to use long-range missiles on Putin’s forces

Washington’s decision to let Ukraine strike deep into Russia with long-range US missiles could lead to World War Three and will receive a swift response, Vladimir Dzhabarov, first deputy head of the Russian upper house’s international affairs committee, said on Sunday, according to the TASS news agency.

Two U.S. officials and a source familiar with the decision revealed the significant reversal of Washington’s policy in the Ukraine-Russia conflict earlier on Sunday.

Sir Keir Starmer has “no plans” to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin as he said “we need to double down” on support for Ukraine with the conflict approaching its 1,000th day.

The Prime Minister pledged that Ukraine was “top” of his agenda at this week’s G20 summit of world leaders and told reporters that “there’s got to be full support as long as it takes”.

There has been concern about the level of support the US may continue to give Ukraine when President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.

Earlier this week, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke to Mr Putin on what was the Russian leader’s first publicly announced conversation with the sitting head of a major western power in nearly two years.

Asked if he had any plans to make a similar call, Sir Keir said: “It’s a matter for Chancellor Scholz who he speaks to. I have no plans to speak to Putin.”

The West should not back down from supporting Ukraine with long-range missiles despite Vladimir Putin’s fresh threats of possible war with Nato, Kremlin critics, military leaders and Ukrainian officials previously toldThe Independent.

Prominent Putin critic Sir Bill Browder told The Independent: “[Putin’s] psychology is one where he’s provoked by weakness, not by strength, and the only way to deal with Russia is to put a boot on the throat.

“This is all bluster, as far as I can see. Good luck to him if he wants to go to war with Nato. He would lose that war in a matter of days.”

Vladimir Putin warned it would be an act of war back in September when reports emerged that Joe Biden was considering “working out” the possibility of US long-range missiles being used inside Russia. He told state media: “It would mean that Nato countries, the US, European countries, are at war with Russia.

“If that’s the case, then taking into account the change of nature of the conflict, we will take the appropriate decisions based on the threats that we will face.”

The first deep strikes are likely to be carried out using Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) rockets, which have a range of up to 190 miles (306 km), according to the sources.

ATACMS are a long-range guided missile that gives operational commanders the “immediate firepower to win the deep battle”.

Produced by US global security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin, the missiles carry a 500lb (227kg) class blast fragmentation warhead.

The weapons are fitted with a specialised GPS system and have a maximum range of 300km (around 190 miles) – though the ones supplied to Ukraine have a shorter range and carry cluster munitions.

When fired, the clusters open in the air, releasing hundreds of bomblets rather than a single warhead.

The other missile being touted the British/French made Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG missile has a much longer estimated range of up to 550 km (340miles).

Leaders of the major democracies in the G7 repeated their pledge on Saturday to impose severe consequences on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

The consequences will include sanctions, export controls and other measures, the G7 said. The group will continue supporting Ukraine for as long as necessary, it added.

“Russia remains the sole obstacle to just and lasting peace,” it said in a statement on Saturday. The statement was adopted “in support of Kyiv as the thousandth day of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine approaches.”

“The G7 confirms its commitment to imposing severe costs on Russia through sanctions, export controls and other effective measures. We stand united with Ukraine,” the statement added.

Italy currently holds the 2024 rotating presidency of the G7. Other member states include United States, Canada, Japan, France, Germany and Britain.

Joe Biden has authorised Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles to strike hundreds of miles inside Russia for the first time, according to reports.

The decision is a major US policy shift and comes after Russia warned that Moscow would see the move to allow the use of US-made missiles “as a major escalation”.

With Biden leaving office in two months President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to limit American support for Ukraine and end the war as soon as possible.

Prominent Russian opposition figures have led a march of at least 1,000 people in central Berlin, criticising Russian President Vladimir Putin and his war in Ukraine and calling for democracy in Russia.

Behind a banner that read “No Putin, No War”, the protesters were led by Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of top Putin critic Alexei Navalny, as well as Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Kara-Murza, who were freed from Russian detention in a high-profile prisoner exchange this summer.

Shouting “Russia without Putin” and other chants in Russian, the demonstrators held up signs with a wide array of messages on a red background, including “Putin = War” and “Putin is a murderer” in German.

Some marched with the flags of Russia or Ukraine, as well as a white-blue-white flag used by some Russian opposition groups.

Organisers said the march began near Potsdamer Platz and went through the Brandenburg Gate and Checkpoint Charlie and was expected to end outside the Russian embassy.

“The march demands the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine, the trial of Vladimir Putin as a war criminal, and the release of all political prisoners in Russia,” the protesters said in a statement.

All Ukrainian regions will experience temporary restrictions on power consumption on Monday following Russia’s massive air strike on the country’s energy system, the national grid operator has said.

In a statement, Ukrenergo said temporary cut-offs would last from 6 am until 10 pm, and that workers were repairing damages as quickly as possible.

Russia’s state-owned natural gas company Gazprom stopped supplies to Austria early Saturday, according to the Vienna-based utility OMV after it said it would stop payments for the gas following an arbitration award.

The official cutoff of supplies before dawn Saturday came after Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer on Friday held a hastily called news conference to emphasize his country has a secure supply of alternative fuel for this winter.

OMV said it would stop paying for Gazprom gas to its Austrian arm to offset a 230 million-euro ($242 million) arbitration award it won from the International Chamber of Commerce over an earlier cutoff of gas to its German subsidiary.

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