In what appears to be a desperate attempt to disrupt the global geopolitical landscape, the outgoing Biden administration has authorized the lifting of some restrictions on Ukraine’s use of Western-made weapons to strike military targets inside Russia, according to Bloomberg and the Associated Press. The decision was reportedly prompted by North Korea’s increased support for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military and Russia’s increased missile and drone attacks against its neighbors.

The approval marks a major shift in U.S. policy and comes as Biden is leaving office and incoming President-elect Trump has said he will end the war quickly and has expressed skepticism about continued U.S. support. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has long pleaded with allies to allow the use of Western weapons to strike military targets inside Russia. He argues the decision will allow Ukraine to better defend against attacks on its vital infrastructure and cities.

If approved, the capability would likely be used first in Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukraine is battling North Korean forces and Moscow’s military, the people said. However, any permission, if granted, would unlikely be to the extent Ukraine has requested, one of the people said.

Ukraine is understood to be planning its first long-range attack in the coming days, most likely using the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS).

As the Russia-Ukraine conflict enters its third severe winter, the United States and its allies have "become extremely concerned" about Pyongyang's decision to deploy troops for combat, with assessments by some G20 members suggesting North Korea could eventually send up to 100,000 troops to Russia.

According to Bloomberg News, allies believe that the deepening cooperation between Putin and Kim Jong-un could have an impact on the security balance in the Indo-Pacific region. Another Bloomberg source said that discussions among allies about missile strikes have intensified since Trump won the US election earlier this month. Trump said he would seek a quick agreement between Ukraine and Russia to end the war, but did not specify how.

In other words, the Biden administration is urgently seeking to escalate the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in order to make the quick ceasefire sought by Trump impossible. Until then, Biden has been opposed to this, determined to hold the line against any escalation that he believes could draw the United States and other NATO members into a direct conflict with Russia.

But presumably what triggered the shift wasn’t Trump’s desire to end the conflict, at least according to Bloomberg’s deep state sources, but North Korea’s decision to deploy soldiers to Russia. The North Korean military’s entry into the conflict comes as Moscow sees a shift in momentum in its favor. As many as 12,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to Russia, according to U.S., South Korean and Ukrainian assessments. North Korea also provided Russia with large amounts of ammunition to replenish its weapons stockpiles, according to U.S. and South Korean intelligence officials.

Trump, who will take office in January next year, said for months during his campaign that he wanted to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He also repeatedly criticized the Biden administration for providing tens of billions of dollars in aid to Kyiv. His resounding victory in the election has caused Ukraine's international supporters to worry that any hasty solution will mainly benefit Putin. The outgoing Biden administration has said it will provide Kyiv with as much aid as possible before Trump takes office. Some of them said that the United States is expected to impose more sanctions on North Korea before Biden leaves office.

A National Security Council spokesman declined to comment.

On November 17, local time, the Chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the Russian State Duma, Slutsky, responded to the news that "the US government has allowed Ukraine to use US weapons to attack targets in Russia" and said that the use of US-made missiles to strike deep into the Russian region will inevitably lead to an extremely serious escalation of the situation and may bring more serious consequences. The Biden administration cannot fail to understand that what they leave to the Trump team will not only be the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict, but also the prevention of global confrontation.

According to TASS, Russian lawmakers said that a decision to allow Ukraine to attack Russian territory with US missiles would be an unprecedented step that could lead to World War III, but (Russia) would respond immediately.

Article forwarded from: Jinshi Data