It would be difficult for Trump to revoke Biden's permission for Ukraine to use ATACMS - Polish expert
It may be difficult for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to reverse the decision of the incumbent President Joe Biden to grant Ukraine permission to use ATACMS long-range missiles against targets inside Russia once he takes office, as the Ukrainians will use the time before the inauguration (January 20 - ed.) to prove the effectiveness deep strikes into Russia.
This opinion was expressed by a Polish expert, former Minister of National Defense of Poland, Janusz Onyszkiewicz, in a comment to an Ukrinform correspondent.
As the former minister noted, two factors influenced Biden’s decision: Russia's escalation at the front due to the deployment of North Korean soldiers, as well as the latest massive missile strike, which, moreover, happened immediately after Putin's phone call with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
"All this forced President Biden to take such a step. It is a shame that it was done so late, such permission should have been given much earlier. However, as they say, better late than never," Onyszkiewicz emphasized.
At the same time, the expert emphasized the positive side of such a step on the part of Biden, as it is not clear whether the next President Trump would make a similar decision. In his opinion, the new U.S. president "may find it difficult" to cancel the decision already taken by Washington to grant Kyiv permission to use long-range ATACMS missiles.
"I think it may be too late because the Ukrainians will probably have used this time to hit the relevant targets in Russia, proving the effectiveness of these moves," the Polish expert opined.
He added that although Trump's team is already criticizing Biden for the decision, "he probably won't cancel it."
According to the former minister, the permission to use long-range missiles by Ukraine "will positively influence the situation at the front", although "we should not hope for a breakthrough".
"This will be no breakthrough. But, without a doubt, this will make it easier for the Ukrainian side to deliver painful blows to Russia, which the Kremlin will feel. And, I hope, this will contribute to Russia finally sobering up and deciding to start negotiations on ending the hot phase of conflict," the expert stated.
Commenting on media reports that the first strikes by ATACMS missiles may be aimed at targets in Kursk region, where North Korean soldiers have been deployed, the former minister noted that attacking North Korean soldiers with these very expensive means of destruction would be "not the best solution, since the Koreans are located relatively close range from the front line".
"This type of weapon is not needed to destroy their positions. I think these will be strikes on targets of strategic or operational importance. Perhaps there will be strikes on Russia’s energy infrastructure or petrochemical industry facilities, military airfields where warplanes take off and where missiles are launched against Ukraine’s critical infrastructure," the former head of the Polish Ministry of Defense stressed.
As The New York Times reported with reference to American officials, U.S. President Joe Biden for the first time allowed Ukraine to use long-range ATACMS missiles against targets inside Russia.