Hello, from CNN, I'm Joe Beck, with the five things you need to know for Monday, November 18th.

In a huge change of policy, two US officials say President Joe Biden has given Ukraine the go-ahead to use long-range US weapons to strike targets inside Russia.

Ukraine's president has praised the decision, while the Kremlin says it shows the Biden administration

wants to, quote, throw oil on the fire of the conflict.

CNN's Kevin Liptack has more on the timings of the decision.

It comes at what officials describe as an inflection point in the war. Tens of thousands of Russian troops are massing near the region of Kursk, as Vladimir Putin looks to clawback territory.

They're being supplemented by thousands of North Korean troops, which has caused a massive degree of alarm in Washington.

And certainly this move is designed,

according to American officials,

to send a message to the North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un

that he sends his people into war in Ukraine

at their own peril.

But I don't think we can ignore the fact

that this is also coming two months

before Donald Trump resumes his power

in the White House.

We're still waiting on Donald Trump's elections for some key administration positions,

as the president-elect digs in over some of his most controversial picks.

I've asked CNN Steve Contorno for the latest.

Good morning, Joe.

Donald Trump is back in Palm Beach today, and we expect him to continue filling

out his cabinet. He still has to name secretaries of treasury, commerce, labor, housing and

...