New American Restrictions: Washington Prevents Kyiv from Bombing Russia

The Wall Street Journal revealed yesterday, Saturday, citing American officials, that the U.S. Department of Defense (the Pentagon) has secretly imposed restrictions on Ukraine's use of American long-range "ATACMS" missiles, preventing Kyiv from striking targets within Russian territory, in a move that directly limits the ability of Ukrainian forces to expand their military operations against Russia.

According to the newspaper, this policy, adopted since late last spring, stipulates that Ukraine must obtain high-level approval within the U.S. Department of Defense before using this type of weapon, which has a range exceeding 300 kilometers.

A special "review mechanism" has been developed for this purpose by the U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, Elbridge Colby, which grants Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth the authority for the final decision regarding any potential use of these missiles.

This policy represents a practical retreat from a previous decision made by former U.S. President Joe Biden in his last year in the White House, which had granted Ukraine the green light to use "ATACMS" against targets inside Russia, as part of Washington's support for Kyiv's military efforts.

Officials confirmed to the newspaper that Ukraine, on at least one occasion, requested to use those missiles to strike a target inside Russia, but the United States rejected the request, resulting in a reduction of Kyiv's effectiveness in responding to Russian attacks.

These restrictions come at a time when the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to open a dialogue with Moscow, amid stalled opportunities for a genuine peace summit.

White House spokesperson Caroline Levitt stated that "President Trump has been completely clear about the need to end the war in Ukraine. The military situation between Russia and Ukraine has not seen any significant change recently."

She added that Secretary of Defense Hegseth is working "in complete harmony with President Trump."

In a related context, NBC News reported from a source in the White House that Trump made it clear to the Ukrainian government the necessity of accepting a ceasefire largely dictated by Russia's terms.

The source pointed to a post by the U.S. president on the "Truth Social" platform on August 21, in which he stated that Ukraine, as long as it remains in a purely defensive position, will not be able to achieve victory, considering this a "clear signal" of the necessity for Kyiv to accept a peace agreement imposed by Moscow.

In contrast, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsya revealed that the "security guarantees" project presented to his country may be ready within the next week, explaining that the start of the "political track" will not occur until these guarantees are adopted.

He noted that there are complications in drafting the final version, raising doubts about the speed of progress in the political process.

These developments come amid ongoing military escalation between Russia and Ukraine, and increasing international pressure on both sides to enter into serious negotiations, at a time when hopes for a comprehensive peace summit to end the war that has lasted for more than three years are dwindling.