France 'gives green light' to Ukraine to use long-range missiles to attack Russian territory

In an interview with the BBC, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot insisted that Western allies should not set “red lines” in supporting Ukraine, stressing France’s commitment to providing military aid to Ukraine as long as necessary.

Foreign Minister Barrot confirmed that Ukraine could use French long-range missiles to strike the territory of the Russian Federation, provided that it was an act of self-defense.

However, Mr Barrot avoided confirming whether French weapons had been used in such operations.

“The principle has been established… our message to President Zelensky has been well received,” Mr. Barrot said.

The French Foreign Minister stressed that there should be no restrictions on assistance to Ukraine in the fight against the Russian Federation's special military operation.

“We will support Ukraine as strongly and as long as possible. Why? Because our own security is at stake,” Barrot explained, adding that “every square kilometer the Russian Federation’s troops advance, the threat to Europe moves one square kilometer closer.”

Mr Barrot also suggested that Western countries, including France, may need to increase defence spending to face new security challenges.

“We will have to spend more if we want to do more,” said Mr. Barrot. “We need to face these new challenges.”

The foreign minister also mentioned Ukraine's aspirations to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), something President Zelensky has repeatedly called for.

Mr. Barrot hinted at the possibility of inviting Ukraine to join NATO, noting that France and its allies are working to bring Ukraine closer to the alliance.

Previously, despite months of Ukrainian calls amid Moscow's heavy offensive in the Donetsk and Kharkiv regions, Western countries had refrained from using long-range missiles against targets on Russian territory due to concerns about the risk of escalation.

However, on November 17, US media reported that President Joe Biden had approved Ukraine's use of these weapons.

Two days later, the first attack by an Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) was carried out by Ukraine against a command post in the village of Maryino in the Kursk Oblast of the Russian Federation, killing 18 Russian soldiers and injuring 33 others, including three third-party personnel.

On November 21, an attack with British-made Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles also took place, and the target was located in the Bryansk region of the Russian Federation. According to United24, among the injured were officers from the Southern and Eastern Military Districts of the Russian Federation.

According to experts, when long-range missiles such as the US ATACMS and the UK Storm Shadow/SCALP attack deep into the territory of the Russian Federation, Moscow will have to withdraw its aircraft from the range of Ukrainian missiles, reducing its combat capabilities, especially attacks with guided bombs.

Euromaidan Press newspaper on November 23 quoted Pavlo Narozhnyi, military expert and founder of the charity organization “Reactive Mail”, saying that after Ukraine was allowed by the US to use long-range Army Tactical Missiles (ATACMS) to attack the territory of the Russian Federation, Moscow’s forces will be forced to significantly reduce the deployment of guided bombs from the air due to having to move aircraft to more distant airports.

According to Narozhnyi, the Russian Federation does not have enough aircraft and pilots. Currently, they can carry out 60-65 sorties per day, dropping about 100-120 guided bombs.

However, if their aircraft have to travel more than 300 km, the number of sorties will decrease by 30-40% because longer flights will wear out engines faster and make pilots tired, increasing the possibility of errors.

Narozhnyi noted that even if Ukraine does not attack Russian airfields or carry out long-range strikes, Moscow will still have to withdraw its aircraft from the range of Ukrainian missiles, which will limit its combat capabilities.

The reason is that for safety, the Russian Federation may have to relocate Su-34, Su-35 fighters, Su-25 attack aircraft, and helicopters equipped with anti-tank weapon systems such as Vikhr missiles.

These weapons pose a threat to Ukrainian tanks, but their combat capabilities would be reduced because their range usually does not exceed 300 km.