Biden authorizes Ukraine to carry out limited strikes in Russia with American weapons

CNN
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President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to strike inside Russian territory with US munitions, although he restricted their use so that kyiv could only hit targets beyond the border near Kharkiv after that Russia has made significant advances around the city, in the northeast of the country. near the Russian border, two US officials told CNN.

“The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use U.S.-supplied weapons for counter-fire purposes in Kharkiv so that Ukraine can retaliate against Russian forces who are hitting them or preparing to hit them,” one of the officials said.

The easing of restrictions marks a break from long-standing policy and comes amid growing international pressure from close U.S. allies. But this is limited to the area around Kharkiv, and Ukraine has not requested authorization beyond that limit, the official said, adding that it does not expect the United States to expand the permitted area.

Politico was the first to report the news.

kyiv has asked Washington to change its policy in recent weeks as Russian forces have advanced, the official said. Russian forces, munitions depots and logistics centers can now be targeted with US-supplied artillery and rockets across the border from Kharkiv in western Russia.

The administration also stands firm in not allowing Ukraine to use the most formidable munitions it has been given to fire on Russia: long-range missiles known as ATACMS that can hit targets 200 miles or 300 kilometers away., far.

Ukraine was authorized to use American anti-aircraft weapons to eliminate the imminent threat of Russian aircraft flying in Ukrainian and Russian airspace, and it did so successfully, the first official stressed. But the ban prevented Ukraine from targeting Russian planes on the ground in Russia.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken publicly signaled his willingness to change the administration's tactics this week when he noted that the United States can “adapt and adjust” its position.

One of the hallmarks of U.S. support for Ukraine “has been to adapt as conditions have changed, as battlefields have changed, as what Russia is doing has changed in terms of continuing its escalation aggression, we adapted and adjusted as well,” Blinken said. Wednesday visiting Moldova. “I have no doubt we will continue to do so.”

The day before, top European leaders signaled that they had changed their position.

Speaking at a press conference alongside German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron stressed that French weapons sent to Ukraine, including long-range missiles, were authorized to target bases in Russia .

“Ukrainian soil is being attacked from bases in Russia,” Macron said during a visit to Meseberg Castle in Brandenburg, Germany. “So how do we explain to the Ukrainians that we are going to have to protect these towns and virtually everything that we see around Kharkiv now, if we tell them that they are not allowed to reach the point where the missiles are being launched from.” fired?”

“We think we should allow them to neutralize the military sites from which the missiles are fired and, basically, the military sites from which Ukraine is attacked,” Macron continued.

Germany's Scholz echoed Macron's comments and said Ukraine was allowed to defend itself as long as it respected conditions imposed by arms-supplying countries – including the United States – and international law .

Initial limits preventing Ukraine from firing U.S. weapons into Russian territory were rooted in the Biden administration's concerns about escalating the war. Although these concerns remain, the United States changed its position after the Ukrainian government explicitly spoke of the need to defend Kharkiv, European allies began to change tactics, and NATO leaders quietly urged the United States to United to authorize such strikes.

Blinken visited Ukraine earlier this month and heard firsthand the Ukrainian request to attack targets inside the Russian border. During that trip, Blinken reiterated that the United States would work to put Ukraine in a “position where it can deter and defend against future attacks.”

“The United States feels the weight of the argument,” a European diplomat said earlier this week, expecting a change in American policy.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has quietly urged the United States and other countries to give Ukraine the capabilities it needs to attack targets in Russia, sources said.

Stoltenberg's repeated efforts behind closed doors did not immediately result in a change in U.S. policy. But this week he made a point of publicly discussing the advantage – and perhaps the necessity – of allowing Ukraine to defend itself without limits.

“Denying Ukraine the ability to use these weapons against legitimate military targets on Russian territory makes it very difficult for it to defend itself,” Stoltenberg said last week.

This story has been updated with additional details.