US and UK press Ukraine before allowing Russia strikes

The U.S. and the U.K. signaled they were open to Ukraine’s request to use western-provided weapons to strike deeper into Russia despite concerns that doing so could further escalate a conflict now in its third year.

During a visit to Kyiv on Wednesday, the two countries’ top diplomats didn’t rule out agreeing to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s request but said President Joe Biden would discuss the matter more when he meets Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Washington later this week.

That has dovetailed with a push by some of Ukraine’s allies to allow neighboring NATO members to shoot down Russian missiles and drones inside Ukrainian airspace before they enter their own, according to people familiar with the matter.

The U.S. until now has opposed using US-provided weapons to hit targets deeper in Russia, citing concerns that doing so might only deepen the conflict. But Washington and London have changed their tone in the days since they accused Iran of sending a shipment of ballistic missiles to Russia. That move was “a significant and dangerous escalation,” U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said at a press conference in Kyiv.

“I’m going take this discussion back to Washington to brief the president on what I heard,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the same briefing. “We have adjusted and adapted as needs have changed, as the battlefield has changed and I have no doubt we’ll continue to do that.”

The joint visit by Blinken and Lammy was meant to hear Zelenskyy’s plan to striking deeper into Russian territory and discuss his longer-term strategy into next year. That included wanting to get a better sense of what Kyiv wants to target and why.

The meeting between Blinken, Lammy and Zelenskyy went longer than planned and the Ukrainian president explained in detail why Ukraine needs to strike inside Russia, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations. The person said Zelenskyy told them Ukraine is only interested in military targets and discussed his country’s plans for the coming months.

Ahead of the meeting with Blinken and Lammy, the Ukrainian president said he would reinforce his plea to soften weapons restrictions in a meeting with Biden later this month in New York, where world leaders will gather for the UN General Assembly’s annual high-level debate.

“Unfortunately it doesn’t depend on my optimism, it depends on their optimism,” Zelenskyy told reporters Wednesday.

A decision on deep strikes is unlikely to come before the UN meeting in New York, although Biden may weigh in on whether a policy shift is coming. Lammy confirmed that, saying the UN meeting would be the next opportunity to discuss long-range missiles and further support for Ukraine. The U.K. has indicated it’s open to Ukraine striking military targets inside Russia with Britain’s Storm Shadow missiles.

Late last month, Zelenskyy said he would lay out a “victory plan” to force Russia to halt its invasion when he meets with Biden, though didn’t offer specifics. He said he would also brief the U.S. presidential candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, on the plan.

The question took on new urgency for Ukraine after Tuesday night’s debate between Harris and Trump. The Republican nominee twice declined to say if he wants Ukraine to win the war against Russia, saying instead he wants “the war to stop.” He reiterated his claim that, if elected, he’d resolve the war before taking office.

Ukraine’s new foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, deflected a question about Trump’s remarks at the briefing with Lammy and Blinken. “We believe in and are fully convinced of the full support of the American people,” he said.

On Tuesday, the U.S. and the U.K. accused Iran of shipping its Fath-360 missiles to Russia despite months of warnings not to do so. The transfer represents a deepening involvement by Tehran in Russia’s war in Ukraine and marks a “critical moment” in the war, Blinken said.

And while Blinken indicated he’s more amenable to a policy change, others in the Biden administration, including Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, have expressed reluctance. During a meeting with defense chiefs last week at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Austin told reporters that no specific weapon would be a game changer in Russia’s war.

The Biden administration is facing pressure from some NATO allies to take a more aggressive stance. Sybiha has discussed the idea of NATO shooting down Russian missiles, according to the people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified as the talks are private.

The people said there’s no consensus within NATO and a policy change isn’t imminent. One official said nations on NATO’s eastern flank could take action in Ukrainian airspace without a broader agreement.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski told the Financial Times last week that Warsaw and others have a “duty” to intercept incoming Russian missiles, although that sentiment isn’t universally shared within his coalition government. Outgoing NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg previously rejected such a proposal, saying it risked the alliance “becoming part of the conflict.”