WASHINGTON, May 29. /TASS/. Washington’s stance about unacceptability of using US weapons for strikes on the Russian territory remains unchanged, White House National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby said.
"There's no change in our policy. We do not encourage nor do we enable attacks using US weapons on Russian soil," he said, answering to a reporter’s question at a briefing.
"I don't have any changes to speak to," he continued, adding that the format of US military support to Ukraine"has evolved appropriately as the battlefield conditions have evolved."
In an interview with the Economist, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg suggested NATO allies should reconsider whether Ukraine could use Western-supplied weapons to carry out strikes on military facilities inside Russia's internationally recognized borders. However, Stoltenberg said at a session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly that there should be no NATO troops on the ground in Ukraine because otherwise, it would be difficult to keep the bloc out of the conflict.
Western countries sending their weapons to Ukraine are divided about limitations on its use. According to Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder, the United States is against using US-made weapons outside Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly stressed that he objects to supplying Kiev with long-range Taurus cruise missiles because this would imply sending German troops to that country to control their use. This, in his words, is a red line he is reluctant to cross.
Meanwhile, The New York Times reported, citing its sources, that after his recent visit to Kiev US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that he planned to suggest that President Joe Biden lift the ban on using American weapons against targets in Russia.
On May 28, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that when speaking about strikes inside Russia, representatives of NATO countries, "should be aware of what they are playing with." According to Putin, Russia is closely monitoring such a discussion. Once Ukraine’s military uses long-range weapons, Moscow will once again have to decide on ‘a sanitary zone,’ Putin said.