Zelenskyy calls for long-range weapons to defend Ukraine against Russian attacks amid contentious debate

“During last night alone, the Russian army used almost 40 ‘Shaheds’ against Ukraine,” the message reads.

“Importantly, most of them were shot down by our defenders of the sky.”

Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine needs reliable defense against the guided aerial bombs, a long-range weapon that will allow the Ukrainian military to destroy Russian aircraft right at the airfields.

“When Russian aviation launches more than a hundred guided bombs against our cities, villages, and frontline positions every day, we need reliable protection against them,” he said.

“This is possible if we destroy the carriers of these bombs – Russian military aircraft – wherever they are. Our sufficient long-range capabilities should be a fair response to Russian terror. Everyone who supports us in this supports the defense against terror.”

Use of Western weapons to strike Russian soil

Despite the use of Western arms, the United States has expressed a specific stance on the matter. White House spokesperson John Kirby emphasized on May 17 that the U.S. does not encourage Ukraine to use American weapons to strike Russian territory, stating that foreign weapons should be used to reclaim Ukraine’s sovereign territory, specifically within its borders.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a May 21 interview with The New York Times, revealed he had sought U.S. permission to use American missiles and other weapons against military targets in Russia. Subsequent reports by AFP on May 29 cited anonymous sources stating Ukraine had already used Western weapons for strikes on Russian territory multiple times.

In a significant development reported by The New York Times on May 31, President Joe Biden permitted Ukraine to carry out limited strikes on Russian territory with American-made weapons, a decision influenced by pressure from his advisors and key allies. On the same day, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed this approval, and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius authorized Ukraine to use German-made weapons for strikes on Russian territory, albeit only in areas close to the border.

The approval’s immediate impact was seen when Ukrainian forces attacked the Russian city of Belgorod using HIMARS, a U.S.-supplied multiple rocket launcher, just hours after the White House’s approval, as reported by Forbes on June 2.

Ukraine can shoot down Russian fighter jets in the Russian airspace with German Patriot air defense systems, German Major General Christian Freuding, head of the Bundeswehr’s Situation Center Ukraine, said on June 3.

Ukraine could use American weapons to strike any Russian forces attacking across the border, not just those in Kharkiv Oblast, the United States announced on June 21.

The United States allowed Ukraine to strike Russian territory at a distance of less than 100 km from the border, The Washington Post reported. This does not give an opportunity to hit the key airfields used to host planes dropping aerial bombs on Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the United States to allow Ukraine to launch ATACMS strikes on Russian airfields on June 30.

Washington will reduce restrictions on the use of its weapons by Ukraine to strike targets in Russia if the aggressor country tries to expand the current front, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs James O’Brien said on July 2.

Decisions on permitting Ukraine to use Western weapons for strikes on Russian airfields are already being prepared, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, said on July 4.

Ukraine wants to increase pressure on the Biden administration at the NATO summit to lift all restrictions on strikes by American weapons on Russian territory, Presidential Office head, Andriy Yermak, said on July 10.

The UK allowed the use of Storm Shadow missiles to strike military targets on Russian territory, Zelenskyy said on the same day.

The AFP news agency, citing unnamed sources, reported that Ukraine had already used Western weapons to strike Russian territory several times, most recently in Krasnodar.

The new British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, spoke to journalists at the NATO summit in Washington on July 10, D.C., and said that Ukraine could use British long-range Storm Shadow missiles to strike military targets in Russia.