Ukraine confirmed on Wednesday that it had used weapons supplied by the United States to attack Russian bridges over the Seym river in Kursk.
On Monday, a Russian military investigator said that Ukraine had completely destroyed one of the three bridges on Seym, damaging the other two. The US has not officially commented on whether its weapons were used.
However, a Kremlin spokesperson previously accused Kyiv of using weapons built in the West in its recent incursion in the Kursk region.
“For the first time, the Kursk region was hit by Western-made rocket launchers, probably American HIMARS [High Mobility Artillery Rocket System],” Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on August 16 on the Telegram messaging app.
Ukraine’s ongoing incursion into Kursk began on August 6.
Here’s what we know about the foreign weapons Ukraine is using:
Which weapons is Ukraine using in its incursion into Russia?
- Ukraine confirmed on Wednesday that it had used the US-supplied HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) during its attacks on bridges in Russia.
⚡️🇺🇦M142 HIMARS strikes with GMLRS missiles and ATACMS cluster missiles on 🇷🇺Russian pontoon crossings in the Kursk region pic.twitter.com/8iCv1bsVYS
— 🪖MilitaryNewsUA🇺🇦 (@front_ukrainian) August 21, 2024
- UK media, including Sky News and the BBC, published speculation on August 15 that Ukraine had used British Challenger 2 tanks on Russian territory. The Ministry of Defence in London declined to comment on which specific weapons Ukraine is using, both outlets reported.
- It is also believed that German-supplied weapons have been used in the Kursk incursion. Germany is one of the largest supplier of weapons to Ukraine – second only to the US. It supplies Marder infantry fighting vehicles, Leopard battle tanks, air defence systems, drones and rocket launch systems to Kyiv.
Which NATO countries have allowed Ukraine to use their weapons inside Russia?
On May 31, US President Joe Biden relaxed a ban on Ukraine using US weapons inside Russian territory, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a news conference during an informal NATO meeting in Prague.
This marked a change in Biden’s policy, who had previously refused to allow Ukraine’s use of US-supplied weapons in Russia.
In April, Biden signed off on military support to Ukraine worth almost $61bn, of which about $23bn is being used to replenish military stockpiles and $14bn goes to the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, through which the US government will purchase weapons systems from US defence contractors for Ukraine.
Alex Gatopoulos, Al Jazeera’s defence editor, reported on Wednesday from Kyiv that 13 NATO nations have now given permission for Ukraine to use Western weapons such as tanks, artillery systems and infantry fighting vehicles inside Russia.
These countries include: France, UK, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Netherlands, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Finland, Denmark, Norway and Canada.
What conditions has the US placed on the use of its weapons by Ukraine?
Until Biden’s easing of restrictions on May 31, Ukraine was restricted to using US weapons inside Ukrainian territory only.
Officially, Ukraine is still not allowed by Washington to use US long-range missiles to hit targets inside Russia, amid concerns they could be used on targets deep inside Russian territory which could escalate the conflict.
A long-range missile shoots warheads in a projectile motion towards a distant target.
However, in April, US officials admitted that the US had quietly supplied Ukraine with long-range missiles as part of an aid package in March, and that Ukraine had used these missiles twice as of late April in Russia-annexed Crimea.
On August 12, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told a press briefing that he would not comment on Ukraine’s military operations. “I’ll let them speak to what they’re doing,” he said.
He rendered notions that the West or NATO were at war with Russia “a funny bit of Putin propaganda”, adding that: “The only people at war in Ukraine are the Russians.”
He also added that if Ukraine’s military operations in Russia are making Putin uncomfortable: “He can just get the hell out of Ukraine and call it a day.”
However, on August 16, a US official told the Reuters news agency on condition of anonymity that if Ukraine did start targeting nonmilitary targets such as Russian villages, “it could be seen as stretching the limits Washington has imposed, precisely to avoid any perception of a direct NATO-Russia conflict”.
What do other NATO countries say about the use of their weapons in an incursion into Russia?
“The Western response has been surprisingly low key because, so far, the message from the West has been preventing Ukraine from using Western weapons on Russian territory,” Samantha de Bendern, an associate fellow in the Russia and Eurasia programme at Chatham House told Al Jazeera.
- UK: On August 15, the Ministry of Defence confirmed that British-supplied weapons can be used by Ukraine inside Russian territory. However, Ukraine is still restricted from using long-range Storm Shadow missiles in Russia.
- Germany: German media reported that the parliamentary Defence Committee had also confirmed that Ukraine’s use of German-supplied weapons, including armoured vehicles, inside Russia was legally justified. “Weapons were transferred under the responsibility of Ukraine, which is defending itself against the aggressor and exercising its right to self-defence,” German Finance Minister Christian Lindner told reporters in German, as translated by Ukrainian website Ukrainska Pravda.
What does Ukraine say about its ability to use weapons from NATO countries?
Ukraine wants the restriction by donors like the US and UK on the use of long-range missiles to be lifted.
“The Ukrainians are being very vocal in their request that the US, UK and France should stop limiting the use of the long-range missiles they have provided,” de Bendern said.
In July, Politico quoted Andriy Yermak, top adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying that Ukraine specifically wants the US to allow them to use longer-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to strike Russian territory.
European Union chief Josep Borell urged donors to lift the restrictions on Ukraine, in an X post on Wednesday.
Ukraine’s Kursk offensive is a severe blow to Russian President Putin’s narrative.
Lifting restrictions on the use of capabilities vs the Russian military involved in aggression against Ukraine, in accordance with international law, would have several important effects:
1/3
— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) August 21, 2024
What else has Russia said about the use of NATO countries’ weapons?
Russia has hit out at Western and NATO countries for what it sees as their involvement in the incursion by supplying weapons to Ukraine.
“This is happening against the backdrop of Russia having gone through a major reshuffle in its Defence Ministry,” de Bendern said, adding that since April, 17 officials in the Defence Ministry have been replaced.
In June, Putin sacked four deputy defence ministers, appointing his relative, Anna Tsivileva, to take over from one of them.
“Every time the West promises new weapons to Ukraine, Putin threatens nuclear use and terrible retribution. Now Putin is downplaying this invasion,” de Bendern said.
“The disarray in Russia is showing the armed forces are going through some kind of chaotic response mechanism.”
