The United States secretly sent long-range robots

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Two sources told the Associated Press news agency that Ukraine bombed Russian targets on occupied Ukrainian territory with secretly delivered long-range U.S. drones.

The US State Department confirms that the country sent the robots.

The robots are said to have struck a Russian military air base in Crimea and against Russian forces in another occupied part of the country.

It is the long-range model of the Atakum ballistic robot that Ukraine is eyeing, with a range of 300 kilometers, and which was sent by the United States.

The robots were provided to Ukraine at the direction of the president, according to State Department spokesman Vedant Patil.

The robots were sent for use within the territory of Ukraine, and arrived in Ukraine in April, according to the administration.

Ukraine had previously gained access to an older model of the Atakam missile, with a shorter range, according to media reports in October.

More long-range robots are on the way as part of a new U.S. aid package hammered out in Congress and signed by President Joe Biden, one government source tells The Associated Press.

The United States had previously hesitated to hand over long-range weapons, for fear of escalation.