The timing is no coincidence. Amid ceasefire negotiations and a peace plan involving the United States, Ukraine on Tuesday announced that it had fired an American ATACMS ballistic missile into Russian territory.
If no details about the target were leaked, it was clearly a military position. Some sources mention military infrastructure in the city of Voronezh located 170 km northeast of Ukraine.
“Important event”
Even Russia confirmed the enemy’s attack on Voronezh. The Ministry of Defense reported neutralizing the Ukrainian attack, shooting down four ATACMS missiles. The falling debris only damaged clinics and orphanages, among other things, without causing any casualties.
The simple use of American ATACMS missiles should be of more concern than the extent of their damage, or vice versa. These weapons with a range of 300 km pose a significant threat to Russia’s rear lines and have not been officially used since Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
Thus, these attacks indicate either new shipments of munitions from the United States, or American authorization to continue the attacks, or Ukraine’s desire to influence negotiations.
“The use of long-range strike capabilities, including systems such as ATACMS, will continue,” the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said. Kyiv spoke only of “an important event that underscores Ukraine’s unwavering commitment to its sovereignty.”
Estimated to be worth $1.5 million per unit – the Ukrainian strike cost $6 million for the four missiles delivered to Russia – ATACMS (Army TACtical Missile System) is a tactical surface-to-surface semi-ballistic missile, designed and manufactured by the American defense company Lockheed Martin. With a length of 4 m, it is capable of reaching a maximum speed of Mach 3 or approximately 3,700 km/hour.
