A US Senator said there is a high probability that the administration of President Joe Biden will send the long-range Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) to Ukraine.
The weapon can strike targets up to 200 miles (321 kilometers) away and has long been sought by the Ukrainian military to support its offensive missions against Russian forces.
James E. Risch, a Republican senator from Idaho, told Voice of America that a number of US lawmakers are continuing to pressure the Biden administration to provide Kyiv with all the weapons it needs.
He believes that the US-made ATACMS missiles are an effective weapon to defend Ukraine from Moscow’s full-scale invasion.
“I think the possibility is quite high. I’ve said from the very beginning to give Ukraine everything that shoots, as long as it’s not nuclear,” he said.
“Any other weapons that we have should be made available to the Ukrainians, whether it is F-16 fighters or ATACMS missiles. Everything we have.”
‘No Imminent Decision’
Biden previously said that Washington would not send long-range weapons to Kyiv over fears that they could be used to attack deep into Russian territory.
Amid reports that Congress would change the policy, the US Department of Defense clarified that it was not aware of any imminent decision to provide ATACMS missiles to the war-torn nation.
On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported that the US government is close to providing them to Ukraine.
“I don’t have anything to announce regarding ATACMs and certainly I’m not aware of any imminent decisions as it relates to ATACMs,” Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said.