Russia Claims Ukraine Used U.S.-Made Missiles in Strike

Ukraine’s military said it hit ammunition warehouses in the Bryansk region of Russia on Tuesday, in a pre-dawn strike that Moscow claimed relied on U.S.-made ballistic missiles.

A Ukrainian official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations, also said that at least one American-made ballistic missile was used in the attack. The claims from Moscow and from the Ukrainian official could not be independently verified.

If confirmed, the strike would be first time that Ukraine had used the weapon, known as the Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, to strike inside Russia.

President Biden’s decision on Sunday to authorize Ukraine’s use of U.S.-supplied ballistic missiles for attacks inside Russia marked a major shift in American policy. Ukraine had spent years lobbying for the permission, which came just months before the return to office of President-elect Donald J. Trump, who has said he will seek a quick end to the war in Ukraine.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement that Kyiv used six ATACMS on Tuesday. It claimed that five of the missiles were shot down and another was damaged, saying that falling fragments caused a fire at the military facility but that there were no casualties.

The Ukrainian military said it struck a large ammunition depot in the Bryansk region of Russia before dawn, but did not specify the weapon used. The Ukrainian official who spoke on the condition of anonymity confirmed the use of ATACMS.

The attack came on the same day President Vladimir V. Putin lowered Russia’s threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, a long-planned move whose timing appeared aimed at showing the Kremlin could respond aggressively to Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory with American long-range missiles.

Maria Varenikova contributed reporting from Kyiv, and Lara Jakes from Rome.