Deep strikes into Russia by Western long-range missiles to change nature of war - ISW

This is stated in the report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank, seen by Ukrinform.

As noted, during these strikes, Ukrainian forces, in particular, used long-range attack drones and Storm Shadow missiles, hitting a number of military targets in the Russian rear.

ISW has long assessed that the systems and capabilities that Western partners are providing Ukraine, alongside Ukraine's indigenous defense industrial production and innovation efforts, are all constituent components of wider capabilities that Ukraine requires to successfully wage a multi-domain large-scale modern war.

Ukraine has already proven its effectiveness in using drones, often of domestic production, to strike various military targets in the Russian rear, including air bases, command posts, and artillery depots, says analysts.

"Ukraine's arsenal already includes aerial and naval drones and Western-provided systems such as F-16s, HIMARS, and ATACMS, although the conditions of use on the latter systems have been restricted enough to limit the benefit Ukraine can accrue by using them. The addition of more powerful and precise Western-provided systems, such as JASSMs and additional ATACMS, Storm Shadows, and SCALP systems, is crucial in enabling Ukraine to scale up the effects it can generate through long-range strikes against the Russian rear," ISW said.

The report emphasizes that any restrictions on Ukraine's ability to use Western-made weapons for strikes inside Russian territory are narrowing Ukraine's options to develop commensurate strike packages. "Ukraine requires continued Western military assistance, as well as domestic innovation and production, in order to continue building and utilizing strike packages to target the Russian rear and generate tactical to operational-level impacts on the battlefield," analysts conclude.

As reported, on November 17, The New York Times, citing its sources, wrote that U.S. President Joe Biden had allowed Ukraine to use long-range ATACMS missiles against targets deep inside Russian territory.

Later, the Republican leadership in U.S. Senate confirmed the administration’s move to cancel restrictions on Ukraine’s use of ATACMS long-range missiles.

The Times reported with reference to its own sources in the UK government that Ukraine was allowed to hit targets in Russia with Storm Shadow missiles.

Bloomberg, with reference to a Western official, wrote that the Ukrainian military for the first time employed UK-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles to attack military facilities on Russian soil.