JAKARTA - President Joe Biden has quietly authorized limited use of U.S.-supplied weapons for Kyiv against military targets in Russia that could be used to attack Ukrainian territory, four U.S. officials said on Thursday.
The U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Biden's decision only applies to targets in Russian territory near the border with the Kharkiv region, where Moscow launched an attack on May 10.
"The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine can use U.S.-supplied weapons for retaliatory purposes in the Kharkiv region, so that Ukraine can respond to Russian forces that attack them or are preparing to attack them," a U.S. official said, as reported by Reuters on May 31.
The decision marks a change in policy from President Biden, who has steadfastly refused to allow Ukraine to use U.S. weapons against Russian territory.
The Russian embassy in Washington and the Russian mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Russia is known to be building up troops near the northern part of the region, but does not have enough troops to carry out a major attack, Ukraine's top military commander said on Thursday.
Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, is 19 miles (30 kilometers) from the border with Russia.
It is the second time this year that President Biden has quietly relaxed his arms policy to Ukraine, having previously called for sending long-range missiles known as ATACMS to Kyiv.
“The Biden administration has come a long way from their hypersensitivity and misunderstanding of the risks of escalation,” said Alexander Vindman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel and former director for European affairs on the Trump White House National Security Council.
He praised Biden’s policy shift, which he said “let Ukraine go.”
"Of course it's the right move," Vindman said
The United States is known to be the largest arms supplier to Ukraine in its fight against a full-scale invasion launched by Russian President Vladimir Putin in February 2022.
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However, officials said U.S. policy would continue to prohibit the Ukrainian military from using ATACMS, which has a range of up to 186 miles (300 km), and other long-range weapons supplied by the U.S. for deep strikes inside Russia.
Biden’s decision also does not mean the U.S. now approves of Ukraine’s drone strikes on Russian oil facilities, they said.
Earlier Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin sternly warned NATO members not to allow Ukraine to fire its weapons into Russia.
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