Ukraine is asking its Western allies to permit the use of their donated weapons for deeper strikes into Russia. President Volodymyr Zelensky made the plea as invading forces continue to inflict serious damage on Ukrainian territories using bombs dropped from Russian warplanes. Zelensky said partners should further ease restrictions on the use of Western weapons so that Kyiv’s forces could target Russian air bases and cripple its air power.
The West’s decision to give Ukraine greater freedom to strike deep into Russia has made an immediate impact for the defending forces. According to a report by the New York Times, Kyiv was reportedly able to thwart Moscow’s recent offensive in northern Kharkiv and slow the bombardment of the city. Ukrainian forces also pushed Russian positions back, gaining precious time to fortify their own positions.
Despite being allowed to use US-made missiles against Russian troops in border regions, Ukraine is still unable to reach airfields and their aircraft inside Russia. Ukrainian politician Yehor Cherniev expressed the need to lift restrictions on long-range missiles against limited military targets in Russia.
