“Adding fuel to the fire”: The Kremlin comments on the news of Western weapons being permitted for strikes on Russia

Allowing Kyiv to conduct strikes deep into Russia with American weapons, if true, would mark a qualitatively new level of tension and U.S. involvement in the Ukraine conflict.

This information reported according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

“If such a decision was indeed formulated and communicated to the Kyiv regime, it represents a qualitatively new level of tension and a fundamentally different situation in terms of U.S. involvement in this conflict,” Peskov told reporters on Monday.

In response to a question about Moscow’s reaction to Washington’s decision, Peskov referred to remarks made by Russian President Vladimir Putin at a cultural forum in St. Petersburg in September.

“The targeting assignments for these missile systems can, in essence, only be carried out by NATO military personnel. Ukrainian military personnel cannot do this. So, it is not about allowing or not allowing the Kyiv regime to strike Russia with this weaponry. It is about making a decision on whether NATO countries are directly participating in the military conflict or not. If this decision is made, it would mean nothing less than direct participation by NATO countries—the U.S. and European nations—in the war in Ukraine,” Putin said at the time.

He also pledged an appropriate response to any threats posed to Russia by such decisions.

On Sunday, The New York Times, citing sources, reported that U.S. President Joe Biden had authorized the use of ATACMS missiles by Ukrainian forces for strikes on Russian territory.