Washington [US], May 31: Politico newspaper on May 30, citing knowledgeable sources, said that US President Joe Biden's administration has quietly allowed Ukraine to attack Russian territory with US weapons, with some conditions.
" President Biden recently directed the team to ensure that Ukraine can use US weapons for return fire in the Kharkiv region (Northern Ukraine) so that Kyiv can target Russian forces that are or are preparing to attack Ukraine." , a US official said, emphasizing that the policy prohibiting Ukraine from using long-range weapons to attack Russian territory "has not changed".
CNN quoted this official as saying that Ukraine had previously been allowed to use anti-aircraft weapons donated by the US to shoot down threats from Russian aircraft in both Ukrainian and Russian airspace. However, the ban is preventing Kyiv from targeting ground targets.
Now, Russian soldiers, ammunition depots and logistics centers across the Kharkiv border, within Russian territory, could be attacked by American artillery and rockets. Long-range weapons such as the ATACMS missile, which has a range of 300 km, are still banned from use on Russian soil.
This is said to be a notable change in the stance of Mr. Joe Biden 's administration , which is concerned that using aid weapons to attack Russian soil could escalate tensions. Although the area allowed to attack is limited to the Kharkiv region, Ukraine has not requested to expand the scope, because it believes it will be difficult for Washington to meet that proposal, according to CNN.
US government agencies have not immediately responded to the above information.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously publicly announced the US's intention to change policy to "adapt and adjust" Washington's stance. Some European allies such as France and Germany have also recently given the "green light" for Ukraine to use weapon aid to attack Russian soil.
Regarding Western countries calling for the lifting of arms restrictions on Ukraine, TASS News Agency quoted Russian President Vladimir Putin as saying on May 28 that members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ) " should pay attention to what they are doing". Mr. Putin said Moscow is closely following the situation and will react if the Ukrainian army uses Western long-range weapons.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper