Kyiv vows not to target Russia with long-range Western weapons
Oleksii Reznikov (Photo:REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes)
Ukraine has guaranteed to its partners that it will not use Western-supplied weapons to attack Russian territory, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said during a meeting with EU officials on Feb. 2, as reported by news agency Ukrinform.
Reznikov asked the partners to help Ukraine with upgrading its anti-missile defenses, as soon as possible. He reiterated that Kyiv would like to receive Patriot and SAMP-T at the earliest opportunity, along with the supply of additional IRIS-T and NASAMS systems.
“If we could strike at a distance of 300 kilometers, the Russian army would be unable to ensure defense and would be forced into a defeat,” the minister said.
“Ukraine is ready to provide any guarantees that your weapons will not be used for attacks on Russian territory. We have enough targets in temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine and are ready to coordinate targets with our partners."
He thanked the allies for the decision to provide Kyiv with tanks and armored vehicles and emphasized that this would create an “armored fist to break through Russian defense.” The defense chief also noted that Ukraine needs more artillery and shells to outperform and destroy enemy electronic warfare and air defense systems.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy previously said that Ukraine is not going to strike targets in Russia if the West provides the appropriate weapons.
Earlier, The Wall Street Journal reported that the United States may announce a new military aid package for Ukraine on Feb. 3, which for the first time will include GLSDB “smart rockets” with a range of up to 150 km.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba previously said that long-range weapons remain one of the three key weapon systems Ukraine’s Western allies are reluctant to provide – along with tanks and fighter jets. By late January, the United States, Germany, and the UK announced they will make M1 Abrams, Leopard-2, and Challenger-2 main battle tanks available to Ukraine.
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