President Joe Biden has partially lifted the ban (Picture: Reuters)
President Joe Biden has partially lifted a ban on Ukraine using US arms in strikes on Russian territory to defend Kharkiv, it’s been reported.
Russia has made significant battlefield gains recently and European countries have been increasingly calling on the US to allow strikes across the border with American weapons.
US officials started seriously considering a change to the policy shortly after Russia launched an attack against Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city, Politico reports.
Two US officials, speaking anonymously, say the US policy calling on Ukraine not to use American-provided long-range missiles and other munitions to strike inside Russia offensively has not changed.
It comes as Ukraine has increased its pleas to the US to allow its forces to defend itself against attacks coming from Russian territory.
One of the officials, a Democratic lawmaker, said ‘Russia has pretty effectively used that restriction to their advantage,’ adding that there is ‘consensus’ that ‘there would be real military value in allowing Ukraine to strike targets across the border’.
Rocket strikes hit the village of Mala Danilivka in Kharkiv district of Ukraine on Thursday (Picture: Anadolu/Getty Images)
State Emergency Service discover a body within the remains of the construction hypermarket ‘Epicentr’ in Kharkiv earlier this month (Picture: Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)
At least four people were killed and 38 others injured in Russia’s attack on a hypermarket last week (Picture: Kharkiv Reg. Mil. Administration/Anadolu via Getty Images)
In an open letter a group of House Republicans and Democrats shared their frustration with the policy, saying it allowed the Kremlin to attack Ukraine ‘from Russian territory with impunity’.
But the restrictions haven’t fully been lifted and only apply to forces defending the Kharkiv area, according to reports.
Last month, Congress approved more than $60billion (£47billion) in military aid for Ukraine and delivered long-range missiles to Kyiv for the first time.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken hinted about the change in policy earlier this week, saying US policy towards Ukraine would ‘evolve as needed’.
Russia’s attempts to take Kharkiv have ramped up in recent weeks, with Putin’s forces seizing a village close to the city as part of a major push into Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says the situation there is ‘especially tense’ as street battles raged in several border villages.
Kharkiv is located just 25 miles south of the Russian border.
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