Sept. 11 (UPI) — President Joe Biden suggested his administration may end its ban on Ukraine using long-range weapons against Russia.
The United States has been by far Ukraine’s biggest backer amid its war against the Kremlin, giving it more than $50 billion worth of lethal goods since the conflict began in February 2022.
However, the Biden administration has been reluctant to gift it certain weaponry or sign off on some uses out of fear of escalating the conflict.
Ukraine, though, has increased its requests on the United States, which denied it tanks and the use of sophisticated fighter jets earlier in the war but has since relented.
In May, Biden, as well as other allies, approved Ukraine using their weapons to strike within Russia for limited, defensive purposes, but Kyiv has been pressing to use long-range weapons to attack father within Russia’s borders.
When asked about the long-range weapons restrictions by reporters on Tuesday, Biden responded: “We’re working that out right now.”
The comment came as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in London where he and his British counterpart formally accused Iran of sending short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to use in the Ukrainian conflict.
Blinken said the shipments of short-range missiles will free Russia to use its long-range weaponry for their intended purpose.
The pair announced that they will also be heading to Kyiv on a joint trip sometime this week, with the United States’ top diplomat suggesting that more lethal support could be supplied to Ukraine during the visit.
When asked about Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles, Blinken told Yalda Hakim of Sky News on Tuesday that the Biden administration is not adverse to shifting its policy on the matter.
“What I can tell you is we’ve adapted and adjusted every step along the way. We’ll continue to do that,” he said. “We never rule out, but when we rule in, we want to make sure it’s done in such a way that it can advance what the Ukrainians are trying to achieve.”
