Joe Biden with Volodymyr Zelenskyy
On Thursday, United States officials revealed that President Joe Biden has discreetly approved Kyiv to fire US-supplied weapons against targets inside Russia but only along the border with the area around Ukraine’s northern city of Kharkiv.
The decision is a strategic shift by Biden, who previously refused to let Ukraine use American weaponry for raids inside Russia.
“The President recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use U.S.-supplied weapons for counter-fire purposes in the Kharkiv region so Ukraine can hit back against Russian forces that are attacking them or preparing to attack them”, the US official noted.
NATO allies have urged the United States to allow Ukraine to use Western weapons against missile launchers and other military locations inside Russia that are backing a cross-border offensive that Moscow launched toward Kharkiv this month.
Russian jetfighters flying within Russia have supported the offensive by dropping glide bombs at Kharkiv and Ukrainian defence lines.
Biden’s announcement came shortly after the Pentagon stated that the US policy against using US weapons within Russia had not altered.
Sabrina Singh, Pentagon spokesperson stated, “The security assistance that we provide Ukraine is to be used within Ukraine. And we don’t encourage attacks, or enable attacks, inside of Russia”.
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