US-supplied Himars launched against targets inside Russian border for first time

Ukrainian armed forces have launched a rocket artillery strike inside Russian territory using American-supplied weapons for the first time.

Until now, Ukraine had been forbidden from using US weapons against targets located inside Russia, but that ban was partially lifted.

According to reports, Ukrainian forces used the Himars (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) to fire precision-guided rockets at a target in the city of Belgorod.

• Russia not looking for direct confrontation with Nato, says head of the Armed Forces
• US and Germany to allow Ukraine to use supplied arms to strike inside Russia near Kharkiv
• Russian corvette believed sunk in Ukrainian drone and missile strike on port of Sevastopol

The strike happened around 37 miles behind the frontline, and 50 miles from Ukraine's second city of Kharkiv, which Russia is increasingly targeting.

Himars was also used to target Russian artillery units and troops on the Russian side of the border.

While the ban was put in place to reduce the risk of the war escalating further, both Nato and Kyiv believe the policy allowed Russia to deploy greater numbers of troops and launch strikes with impunity.

US president Joe Biden has now allowed Kyiv more flexibility with its American-supplied weapons.

However, they can only be used in the area around Kharkiv, and even then only short-range missiles can be fired.

Washington is still refusing to allow Ukraine to launch longer-range ATACMS missiles into Russian territory.