World War III dawning? Biden lifts ban on Ukraine using US arms to maim Russia

US president Joe Biden has lifted the ban on Ukraine using US-made long-range missiles to strike deep into Russian territory. They might be deployed against the Russian and North Korean forces in the Kursk region.

The US president okayed Ukraine's use of US-made ATACMS rockets, which have a range of 300 km, after Russia deployed North Korean ground troops to supplement its forces. According to sources, Ukraine is planning to conduct its first long-range attacks in the coming days. Details were understandably kept under wraps for reasons of operational security.

Although he said any proof of a change in policy would only emerge on the battlefield if and when the missiles are used, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy did seem to confirm the news.

“Today, there’s a lot of talk in the media about us receiving permission for respective actions. But strikes are not carried out with words. Such things are not announced. Missiles will speak for themselves. They certainly will,” Zelenskyy said.

Vladimir Dzhabarov, first deputy chairman of the Committee on International Affairs in the Russian Federation Council (the nation's upper house of parliament), warned that Moscow’s response would be immediate if Ukraine should try such an attack.

“This is a very big step towards the start of World War III,” the TASS state news agency quoted Dzhabarov as claiming.

This decision from Biden comes during the presidential transition period in the US — two months before president-elect Donald Trump takes over the Oval Office — and it is unclear whether Trump might reverse Biden's decision when he does take office.

Trump has long criticised the amount of US financial and military aid to Ukraine and had promised to end the war quickly, but never specified how. Critics suggested letting Russia run amok and stoppering US support was a possible 'ending' as well.

Richard Grenell, former acting director of US national intelligence, criticised Biden's decision and stated that the president had escalated the war during the transition period with this choice. In multiple posts on X, he disapproved of Biden's move and claimed this will result in newer wars.

However, Radosław Sikorski, minister of foreign affairs of Poland, welcomed America's decision and said Ukraine is speaking in a language Russia and Putin understand.

Kyiv announced nationwide energy rationing from Monday, 18 November, after Moscow’s biggest drone and missile attack in months on Ukraine’s energy grid on Sunday.

It has also indicated that it wants to use Storm Shadow missiles against Russian airbases used to launch attacks on Ukraine, instead of in Kursk.

The White House and Downing Street in the UK declined to comment on this last.