Biden: Above all, Ukraine needs artillery shells
In Ukraine’s defensive fight against Russia, according to US President Joe Biden, longer-range missiles from the USA are currently not a priority. When asked by a reporter if he was considering providing Ukraine with ATACMS-type missiles, Biden said Wednesday, “Yes, but they have the equivalent of ATACMS now.” What we need most are artillery shells and they are in short supply. We are working on it.” Biden made the statement at the airport in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, before continuing on to Finland.
Ukraine has long been demanding longer-range missiles from its western allies. It already has British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles with a range of 550 kilometers. During the NATO summit in Lithuania, the attacked country also received a commitment from France for cruise missiles.
ATACMS missiles are fired from the ground against ground targets and, according to the armaments company Lockheed Martin, have a range of up to 300 kilometers. This would allow the Ukrainians to attack Russian targets behind the front line. A few days ago, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a CNN interview that the missiles would help Ukraine make faster progress in the counteroffensive to liberate the territories occupied by Russia.