Ukraine Fires British Long-Range Missiles Into Russia

Ukraine fired a number of British Storm Shadow cruise missiles into Russia’s Kursk region on Wednesday, a day after firing American long-range missiles into the country, according to Pentagon and Ukrainian officials.

Moscow has said that the use of Western weapons to strike deeper into Russian territory is a major escalation, and for months that stance had kept the United States and Britain from allowing Kyiv to use the American long-range missiles or the Storm Shadows.

But President Biden last week authorized the first use of the American Army Tactical Missile Systems, known as ATACMS, deep inside Russia. American officials say the pivot was in response to Moscow’s surprise decision to bring North Korean troops into the fight. Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain quickly followed suit, authorizing Ukraine to use the Storm Shadows, officials said.

Britain had previously allowed Ukraine to use the missiles against Russian positions within Ukrainian territory.

Storm Shadows have a range of more than 150 miles, so they give Kyiv the ability to hit targets deeper into Russia.

Downing Street declined to comment on Wednesday, saying it could not speak about operational details. Asked about it in Parliament, John Healey, Britain’s defense secretary, said: “We have seen, over recent weeks, a significant change in the action and in the rhetoric on Ukraine, and Ukraine’s action on the battlefield speaks for itself. We, as a nation and as a government, are doubling down on our support for Ukraine, and are determined to do more.”

The latest shift comes about two months before President-elect Donald J. Trump takes office. He has vowed to limit further support for Ukraine.

Mr. Biden began to ease restrictions on the use of U.S.-supplied weapons on Russian soil after Moscow launched a cross-border assault in May in the direction of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city.

To help the Ukrainians defend Kharkiv, Mr. Biden allowed them to use the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, which has a range of about 50 miles, against Russian forces across the border. But he did not allow them to use the longer-range ATACMS, which have a range of about 190 miles, to defend Kharkiv.

Since the election, the Biden administration has also approved supplying Ukraine with American anti-personnel mines to shore up defenses against Russian attacks as Ukrainian front lines in the country’s east have buckled, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said on Wednesday.

While the officials said they did not expect the more assertive strategy to fundamentally alter the course of the war, it comes as Ukraine has increasingly been on the back foot in the almost three-year-old war. What the shift could do, military analysts say, is help Ukraine strengthen its position in Kursk, which Kyiv seized in August in a move that caught Russia by surprise.

Allowing Ukraine to maintain its hold over the region, in turn, could help to bolster Kyiv’s position in cease-fire or peace negotiations, officials say.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has long sought permission from the United States and its coalition partners to use long-range missiles to strike Russia.

The British and French militaries had given the Ukrainians a limited number of Storm Shadow and French-made SCALP missiles, which have a range of about 155 miles.

But while leaders of both nations voiced support for Mr. Zelensky’s request, they were reluctant to allow Ukraine to start using their missiles on Russian soil unless Mr. Biden agreed to allow the Ukrainians to do the same with ATACMS.

Eric Schmitt and Stephen Castle contributed reporting.