AKIPRESS.COM - UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called to avoid further escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. He made this statement, commenting on The New York Times report saying that US President Joe Biden authorized strikes deep inside Russian territory with US-made ATACMS missiles.

"First of all, our position remains very clear that the constant escalation of the war in Ukraine must be avoided," Guterres underscored.

The New York Times reported on November 17, citing sources, that US President Joe Biden had authorized the use of US-supplied ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles for strikes deep inside Russia. France’s Le Figaro reported that France and the UK had granted similar permission for the use of their SCALP and Storm Shadow missiles, respectively. The newspaper later removed this statement from its article on the website without explanation. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that Paris had not changed its stance on strikes deep into Russia. London has not yet provided any official comment. The German government confirmed that the United States had informed Berlin of the decision to authorize strikes deep inside Russia. The White House declined to confirm that permission for such strikes had been granted.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow’s position on strikes by US missiles deep inside Russian territory was clearly outlined by Russian President Vladimir Putin in September. According to Peskov, this decision marks a "qualitatively new round" of tensions, Tass reported.