President Joe Biden has approved Ukraine’s request to use weapons provided by the U.S. to attack targets inside a limited portion of Russian territory, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.

What You Need To Know

  • President Joe Biden has approved Ukraine’s request to use weapons provided by the U.S. to attack targets inside a limited portion of Russian territory, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday 
  • The secretary’s comment came during a press conference in Prague that capped his four-day trip to Europe
  • It confirmed reports over the last few days that Biden gave Kyiv the green light to use American weaponry to strike inside Russia but only near the border with Kharkiv for the purpose of defending Ukraine’s second largest city
  • He did not say whether the Biden administration will allow Ukraine to strike inside other parts of Russia but made clear that the U.S. will continue to adapt its positions as the war develops 

“Over the past few weeks, Ukraine came to us and asked for the authorization to use weapons that we're providing to defend against this aggression, including against Russian forces that are massing on the Russian side of the border and then attacking into Ukraine," Blinken said on Friday. “That went right to the president and, as you’ve heard, he’s approved the use of our weapons for that purpose.”

The secretary’s comment -- during a press conference in Prague that capped his four-day trip to Europe -- confirmed reports over the last few days that Biden gave Kyiv the green light to use American weaponry to strike inside Russia but only near the border with Kharkiv for the purpose of defending Ukraine’s second largest city. The decision was first reported by POLITICO.

Blinken emphasized that the U.S. posture has evolved as the conflict and Ukraine’s needs have changed throughout the now more than two-year-old war. He did not say whether the Biden administration will allow Ukraine to strike inside other parts of Russia but made clear that the U.S. will continue to adapt its positions as the war develops. 

“Going forward, we’ll continue to do what we’ve been doing, which is, as necessary, adapt and adjust,” he said. “And that, as I said, has been a hallmark of our engagement.” 

The move marks a notable shift for the White House, which has long said it does not “encourage” or “enable” attacks by Ukraine on Russian soil using U.S.-provided weapons. 

The U.S. and Western leaders have been cautious about sparking a wider war and Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened that direct involvement from the West could lead to nuclear conflict. 

But with Ukraine recently struggling on the battlefield, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged Western partners to allow Kyiv to use the weapons they provide to strike inside Russia. In recent days, a number of those partners have come out and said they support Ukraine’s ability to do so.