US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has ruled out the possibility that the United States would expressly authorize Ukraine to use long-range weapons it sends to attack targets on Russian territory.
“We have had this discussion before about tanks and other capabilities. Each time we have stressed that it is not about one thing, but about the combination of capabilities and how they are integrated,” he said at the end of a Ramstein contact group meeting.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky participated this Friday (6) in one of these meetings, which are being held at the American military base in Ramstein, Germany, for the first time in person, to defend, among other things, that the allies authorize him to attack targets on Russian soil with his weapons.
“There is no single ability that can be decisive in the campaign,” Austin responded to questions from journalists.
Ukraine has “not fared badly” since the start of the war, the US secretary said, attributing this in large part to Western military support, as Ukraine’s armed forces were lacking at the start of the invasion and it was facing the largest army in Europe.
Austin also noted that Russia has already repositioned its fighter jets used to bomb Ukraine, away from the range of long-range weapons such as the US ATACMS systems.
“There are a lot of targets in Russia, obviously, and there are a lot of capabilities that Ukraine has in terms of drones, etc., to attack those targets,” he said.
The US Defense Secretary reiterated that “for the foreseeable future,” the US “will remain focused” on helping Ukraine be effective in defending its sovereign territory.
Austin reiterated that US President Joe Biden will soon announce an additional $250 million in aid for anti-aircraft systems, armored vehicles, anti-tank weapons and ammunition for rocket and artillery systems.
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