Ex-CIA chief Petraeus calls for expanded tactical missile support for Ukraine

Retired US Army general and former CIA Director David Petraeus has warned that the Biden administration’s latest $400 million military aid package for Ukraine, while significant, will not be sufficient to prevent Russian advances, Newsweek reports.

Despite Ukraine’s months-long appeals amid escalating Russian air attacks, Western nations, including the US and UK, continue to restrict the use of their long-range weapons like ATACMS and Storm Shadow missiles to prevent deep strikes inside Russia, reportedly to avoid further escalation.

The package, announced by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during his visit to Kyiv on 21 October 2024, includes armored vehicles and anti-tank weapons for Ukrainian forces on the front lines.

“It comes on top of tens of billions of dollars, of course, from the US and from various European and other Western countries. Is it enough? I fear not,” Petraeus said on CNN, according to Newsweek.

The former CIA director emphasized that Russian forces are achieving daily incremental gains despite Ukraine’s effective resistance.

“What we need to be doing, all of us together, is to try to enable Ukraine to stop the Russian advances on the front lines,” Petraeus stated.

During his Kyiv visit, Austin reportedly said:

“I’ve seen bipartisan support for Ukraine over the last 2.5 years, and I fully expect that we’ll continue to see the bipartisan support from Congress,” Austin was quoted as saying.

Petraeus recommended easing restrictions on tactical missile systems for Ukraine, which would enable strikes deeper into Russian territory. He also advocated for increased international attention to the Black Sea, citing Ukraine’s naval limitations.

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