NEW YORK, November 18. /TASS/. US President Joe Biden's decision to allow Kiev to use US ATACMS missiles to strike deep into Russian territory speaks of the desperation of Western countries over "Russia's guaranteed victory" in the Ukrainian conflict, former US intelligence officer and ex-UN inspector Scott Ritter said.

"The decision by the Biden administration reflects a growing sense of desperation on the part of Ukraine, NATO and the US that the war with Russia is reaching the breaking point, where a decisive Russian victory is all but guaranteed," Ritter wrote on his X page.

According to him, Ukraine and Western countries are also concerned about the results of the US election and the victory of Donald Trump, who wants "to end the war in Ukraine and avoid escalation with Russia."

Earlier, The New York Times reported, citing sources, that Biden had authorized strikes from the territory of Ukraine deep into Russia with ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles. In turn, Le Figaro sources said that France and the UK had authorized strikes with SCALP and Storm Shadow tactical missiles. There has been no official confirmation of this information from Washington, Paris or London.