LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Incumbent President Biden will now let Ukraine fire long-range U.S. missiles into Russia.
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Biden is clearing Ukraine for actions its leaders have wanted for some time. The U.S. has avoided too much provocation of the world's other leading nuclear weapons state. But now Biden acts shortly before the coming of a new administration, whose approach to Ukraine is uncertain.
FADEL: For more on how this fits into Ukraine's larger military effort, we're joined by NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre. Hi, Greg.
GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Hi, Leila.
FADEL: So what's changed? Why is President Biden deciding to do this with two months left in his presidency?
MYRE: Well, he seems to be acting now because Russia is using some 10,000 North Korean troops in a bid to push Ukrainian forces out of Russian territory. This is according to a U.S. official who spoke to our NPR colleague, Tom Bowman. Now, Ukraine captured a chunk of the Kursk region in western Russia - about 500 square miles - back in August. These Russian and North Korean forces are clawing back some of that territory in heavy fighting. The Ukrainians will now be able to use these U.S. missiles - known as ATACMS - to try to hold this territory.
FADEL: But is President Biden no longer worried about provoking Russia here?
MYRE: Well, no. I mean, all along, his concern has been a possible Russian escalation, but now it seems the priority is signaling that his administration wants to do what it can before leaving office in January. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week, quote, "every dollar we have at our disposal will be pushed out the door."
FADEL: And how much will the long-range missiles help Ukraine - being able to use them?
MYRE: They should certainly help. But Ukraine's argument throughout the war is that Russia can move around troops and weapons with a large degree of freedom behind the front lines on the Russians' side of the border because Ukraine was unlikely to attack them from long distance. So the ATACMS will make it riskier for the Russians to operate in these areas.
However, there are real limits to this new policy. The U.S. said the Russians have already pulled back things like warplanes to take them out of missile range. And the U.S. is just providing a limited number of ATACMS because their own stockpile is limited, and they need to keep some in the U.S. arsenal. The ATACMS can travel about 200 miles. They're quite powerful. Yet while Ukraine has been waiting for this permission from the U.S., it's been building its own attack drones, which can travel even longer distances, though they don't pack quite the same punch.
FADEL: Now, we talked about how this is really just two months left in the Biden administration. Could the incoming Trump administration just change this missile policy and others related to Ukraine?
MYRE: Oh, yes, absolutely. And Trump has been saying he wants negotiations to end the war. The Ukrainians are concerned they'll face pressure to make concessions to Russia, including territorial concessions, which they've adamantly opposed. And Trump has also expressed opposition to more U.S. military assistance. The U.S. had this $61 billion package for Ukraine back in April, and it's working its way through this. U.S. officials say that aid already approved is likely to go ahead, but additional money is now an open question.
FADEL: And meanwhile, winter's approaching, which changes the way this fight happens. What are you watching for?
MYRE: Yeah. Leila, just yesterday, Russia carried out a heavy strike - 200 missiles and drones - one of the heaviest in months. And every winter, Russia is expected, as it has in the past, to wage sustained attacks on Ukraine's power grid. And this has done a lot of cumulative damage, and it will remain a big vulnerability.
FADEL: That's NPR's Greg Myre. Thank you, Greg.
MYRE: Sure thing. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
