Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro condemned reports that the US has authorized the use of long-range weapons by Ukraine for strikes deep within Russian territory.
President Maduro criticized a purported US decision allowing Ukraine to use long-range weapons to attack targets far inside Russia. This alleged policy shift was reported by several Western news outlets on Sunday, with some claiming the UK and France had taken similar actions. However, the French Foreign Ministry clarified that France is still evaluating its position.
Maduro voiced his condemnation during his closing address at the National Congress of Bolivarian Historic Bloc in Caracas. He stated, “The governments of the USA, France and Great Britain – the Holy Alliance of Evil – have just approved for Nazi criminal [Vladimir] Zelensky to use long-range missiles to attack our sister Russia.” He continued, “We are at a defining moment. North American imperialism has entered a phase of madness and revenge.”
🇻🇪 MADURO: U.S., FRANCE, AND UK BACK ZELENSKY’S ATTACKS ON RUSSIA
“The U.S., France, and Great Britain—the ‘holy alliance of evil’—have approved Zelensky’s criminal use of missiles and long-range rockets against our sister Russia.
This is a defining moment.
North American…
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal)
The New York Times reported on Sunday that President Biden authorized Ukraine to use long-range US missiles to strike within internationally recognized Russian territory. Anonymous US officials, according to the report, indicated that Ukraine is expected to utilize Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) against Russian forces and purported North Korean troops in the Kursk Region. The alleged presence of North Korean forces has been cited as justification, despite lacking verified confirmation.
Later that day, Le Figaro reported that France and the UK had mirrored the US action, authorizing strikes deep within Russia. The newspaper later retracted its claim regarding the authorization of SCALP/Storm Shadow missiles for such attacks.
Responding to questions on Monday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot stated that France is still considering whether to allow Ukraine to target Russian territory with French-supplied missiles. He noted President Macron’s May statement expressing consideration of this possibility.
Ukraine has already employed ATACMS and French-British SCALP-EG/Storm Shadow missiles against targets in Crimea and other regions that joined Russia after 2014. However, Zelensky had pressed Western nations for permission to use these long-range weapons to strike targets within Russia’s internationally recognized borders.
Neither the White House nor the Pentagon has offered comment. The Kremlin, however, stated on Monday that if the reports are accurate, this would signify a significant escalation of the conflict, amounting to “NATO nations being at war with Russia.”
President Putin warned in September that extending attacks deep into Russia using Western weapons would “significantly change the nature of the conflict.” He argued that such strikes would necessitate foreign personnel involvement, signifying “NATO countries’ direct participation in military conflict” with Russia.