US officials reveal review mechanism requires Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth’s personal approval for ATACMS strikes as Trump questions winning war ‘without attacking invader’s country’
The Pentagon has been quietly blocking Ukraine from using long-range American missiles to strike targets inside Russia for months, US officials have revealed, just days after President Donald Trump suggested it would be “impossible” to win the war without attacking Moscow.
A review mechanism introduced earlier this year by the US Department of Defence has effectively prevented Ukrainian forces from launching any Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) against Russian territory since late spring, according to officials who spoke to the Wall Street Journal.
The revelation comes after Mr Trump posted on his Truth Social platform last week criticising the former Biden administration for not allowing Kyiv to “fight back”. He wrote: “It is very hard, if not impossible, to win a war without attacking an invader’s country. It’s like a great team in sports that has a fantastic defence, but is not allowed to play offence. There is no chance of winning!”
The President then posted an image of himself prodding Russian President Vladimir Putin in the chest, alongside a similar photograph of Richard Nixon confronting former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.
The explosive disclosure follows reports that during a July 4 phone call, Mr Trump directly asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky whether his forces had the capability to strike major Russian cities. According to the Financial Times, Trump asked: “Volodymyr, can you hit Moscow?… Can you hit St Petersburg too?”
Mr Zelensky reportedly replied: “Absolutely. We can if you give us the weapons.”
However, the Pentagon’s review mechanism, developed by Undersecretary for Policy Elbridge Colby, has made such strikes virtually impossible. The procedure requires personal authorisation from Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth before Ukraine can employ ATACMS for deep strikes into Russian territory.
On at least one occasion, Ukraine sought permission to use ATACMS against a target inside Russia but was denied, two US officials told the Wall Street Journal. The restrictions also apply to British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles, which rely on American targeting data, effectively blocking their use as well.
The approval process was introduced as the Trump administration attempted to lure Mr Putin into peace negotiations. White House officials expressed concerns that allowing US-made missiles to strike deep inside Russia could hamper diplomatic efforts.
A White House spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, said in a statement: “The Financial Times is notorious for taking words wildly out of context to get clicks because their paper is dying. President Trump was merely asking a question, not encouraging further killing. He’s working tirelessly to stop the killing and end this war.”
The Pentagon’s stance represents a significant shift from late 2024, when the Biden administration had permitted limited strikes inside Russia. Ukraine last received ATACMS shipments authorised by the previous administration in spring, with officials saying Kyiv still maintains a small stockpile.
Mr Colby, known for his realist foreign policy views, has long argued that the United States should reduce its involvement in Ukraine to focus military resources on countering China in the Indo-Pacific. He believes aiding Ukraine “jeopardises America’s focus on China” and has repeatedly stated that preventing a Chinese takeover of Taiwan should be Washington’s top priority.
“Ukraine should not be the focus,” Colby told Politico in 2023. “The best way to avoid war with China is to be manifestly prepared such that Beijing recognises that an attack on Taiwan is likely to fail.”
The undersecretary has also implemented a colour-coded rating system – red, yellow, and green – to assess whether the US has sufficient stockpiles of particular weapons before approving transfers to Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials have long argued that restrictions on long-range strikes severely constrain their ability to defend against Russian aggression. The limitations have forced Ukraine to rely increasingly on domestically produced drones for deep strikes inside Russian territory.
President Zelensky recently announced that Ukraine’s home-grown Flamingo missile, with a claimed range of 3,000 kilometres (1,864 miles), could enter mass production in early 2026. On Sunday, he insisted that Kyiv no longer needed US approval to strike deep inside Russia, claiming Ukraine had developed its own arsenal of long-range weapons.
The review mechanism’s existence emerged as European leaders prepared for a meeting on Monday to discuss plans for a Europe-led peacekeeping force in Ukraine should a ceasefire be achieved. Sir Tony Radakin, Britain’s Chief of the Defence Staff, co-hosted the gathering of 30 countries from the so-called “coalition of the willing”.
Despite Mr Trump’s Thursday comments suggesting Ukraine couldn’t defeat Russia without attacking Russian territory, US officials insisted his statement did not signal a policy change that would overturn the Pentagon’s approval mechanism. However, a senior White House official noted that Trump could still change his mind about facilitating expanded offensive operations against Russia.
The President has repeatedly expressed frustration with the slow progress of peace negotiations. Earlier calls between Trump and Putin have failed to produce a breakthrough, with Moscow maintaining demands for Ukrainian neutrality, demilitarisation, and recognition of Russian territorial gains.
Mr Colby’s cautious approach reflects broader concerns within the Pentagon about depleting US military resources. During his Senate confirmation hearing in March, he repeatedly declined to acknowledge that Russia had “invaded” Ukraine, saying only that Russian troops crossing the border was a “factual reality.
The Pentagon and Ukrainian officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the review mechanism’s impact on Ukraine’s military operations.
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