Zelensky: Lifting ban on strikes on Russian territory did not lead to escalation

The West’s decision to allow Ukraine to hit targets within Russia along the Ukrainian border did not lead to escalations but rather stopped the war from expanding, President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the Fourth European Political Community summit in the U.K. on July 18.

Addressing the audience of leaders and officials from 43 European countries at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, Zelensky urged allies to allow Ukraine to hit Russian military airfields and missile launch sites deep into the Russian territory, according to a Kyiv Independent reporter on the ground.

The U.S. gave Ukraine permission on June 1 to use American-supplied weapons, including HIMARS rockets, to strike targets in Russia located near the border with Kharkiv Oblast after Russia launched a renewed offensive in the region on May 10. However, Ukraine is still prohibited from using ATACMS and other long-range U.S.-supplied weapons for strikes deeper inside Russia.

“The fewer restrictions we have on the use of effective weapons, the more Russia will seek peace,” Zelensky said.

“This will not only eliminate some targets, but will also reduce Russia's capability to continue this war.”

Zelensky previously said the lifting of restrictions would produce "an instant result" and could advance Ukraine's counteroffensive in Russian-occupied territories. He emphasized again at the summit that “these steps must be taken,” directing the comment primarily to the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, and Poland.

But Washington remains cautious due to concerns of escalation and the war spilling out beyond Ukraine’s borders, Pentagon spokesperson Patrick Ryder told the Voice of America (VoA) on July 15.

Zelensky said that Ukraine has fully stopped Russia’s Kharkiv offensive. He stressed that this was because Ukraine was allowed to hit targets within Russian territory.

“Did this lead to escalation? No. On the contrary, it blocked Putin's attempt to expand the war. Did Putin have any response? No,” he said at the summit.

Stoltenberg addresses US restrictions on Ukrainian strikes inside Russian territory

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg addressed U.S. restrictions on the use of long-range weapons to strike targets deep inside Russian territory during a press conference on July 10 by affirming Ukraine’s “right to self-defense.”

The Kyiv IndependentRachel Amran