WASHINGTON, May 31. /TASS/. A US Department of Defense official confirmed to TASS that the administration of US president Joe Biden allowed Ukraine to use US weapons against targets on the Russian soil during counter-battery warfare.
"The President recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use US-supplied weapons for counter-fire purposes in the Kharkov region so Ukraine can hit back against Russian forces that are attacking them or preparing to attack them," the official said, answering to a question from TASS.
"Our policy with respect to prohibiting the use of ATACMS or long range strikes inside of Russia has not changed," he added.
The Politico newspaper reported on Thursday, citing four unnamed individuals including two US officials, that US President Joe Biden gave the Kiev government a secret permission to use US-supplied weaponry for attacking targets in the Russian territory. According to the report, the permission applies to Russian regions that border Ukraine’s northeastern region of Kharkov.
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.
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.