Bloomberg reported the first strike of the AFU with Storm Shadow missiles deep into Russia

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) have for the first time used British Storm Shadow missiles to attack deep into Russian territory. This was reported by the Bloomberg news agency on November 20, citing an anonymous source.

According to him, the British government has given Ukraine permission to use these long-range missiles in this way, but considers its own move as an escalation of the conflict.

Earlier in the day, the British newspaper The Times, citing sources, reported that the United States had given Ukraine permission to use British Storm Shadow missiles to strike deep into Russia. As Prime Minister of the kingdom Kim Starmer noted, the use of such missiles by Kiev is a matter of time.

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Before that, on November 17, The New York Times reported that US President Joe Biden had authorized Ukraine to use US long-range missiles to strike Russia, but there was no official confirmation from Washington yet. At the same time, Deputy National Security Adviser to the US president John Feiner did not confirm in a conversation with journalists on 18 November that Washington had given such permission to Kiev. The official noted that the White House is guided in its political decisions by the situation on the battlefield.

Later, on November 19, the Russian Defense Ministry said that calculations of S-400 air defense missile systems (SAMs) and the Pantsir air defense missile and cannon system (ARMS) in the Bryansk region repelled an AFU missile strike, shooting down five ATACMS missiles and damaging another one. The wreckage of the last shell fell on the territory of the military facility, there were no casualties or damage.

Western countries have stepped up military and financial support for Ukraine amid Russia's special operation to protect Donbass, which began on February 24, 2022. The decision to carry it out was made by the Russian president because of the aggravation of the situation in the region due to the increased shelling by Ukrainian troops.