Politico: Ukraine is disappointed with the partial lifting of the ban on strikes deep into the Russian Federation
Photo: social networks
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky was extremely disappointed when the United States only partially lifted the ban on the use of weapons supplied to Kyiv to strike deep into Russia. The newspaper Politico reports this.
Vladimir Zelensky is going to meet again in negotiations with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to expand Kiev’s use of American weapons.
«Two people close to Zelensky administration, said that there is some disappointment in Kyiv because of how geographically limited Ukraine’s use of American weapons will be,” — to be specified in the material.
For more than two years, Washington has told Ukraine that using US-supplied weapons to hit targets inside Russia is unacceptable and could escalate tensions between the two superpowers.
Zelensky was ultimately successful this week thanks to coalition of lawmakers and senior officials in Washington and Kyiv who used the desperate situation in Kharkov to pressure Biden to lift restrictions.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his team watched with alarm as Russian forces began to advance onto the battlefield in the Kharkov region. Austin and his team were concerned that Moscow might take over the city. According to a Defense Department spokesman, the Pentagon chief began discussing “military necessity” with his team. allowing Ukrainians to attack Russian targets across the border to protect against Moscow's attacks.
Kyiv has officially demanded that the White House lift restrictions on weapons so that they can be used to strike Russian positions across the border. They also asked for faster delivery of anti-tank and air defense capabilities, a request Austin has pledged to work on.
On May 20 at the Pentagon, military leaders from around the world met virtually with the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. The meeting, led by Austin and Brown, discussed whether to allow Ukraine to use American weapons to carry out strikes across the border with Russia. A secret letter was sent to the Ukrainian military, which described in detail exactly what weapons they could use in Kharkov and under what circumstances. Officials in Washington and Kyiv agreed to keep the decision secret while Ukraine planned a counteroffensive.
At a news conference in Prague on Friday, May 31, Blinken was asked how far Biden's team would allow Ukraine to go. He did not rule out that the United States would provide the opportunity to attack on regions of Russia remote from the border.