US secretary of state Antony Blinken has wrapped up a three-nation, Ukraine-focused European tour in Poland after hearing repeated appeals from Ukrainian officials to use western-supplied weaponry for long-range strikes inside Russia.
Mr Blinken travelled to Warsaw on Thursday after spending a day in Kyiv with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, during which they pledged to bring the Ukrainian requests to their leaders.
US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer are to meet in the United States on Friday amid signs both Washington and London are growing more receptive to allowing the Ukrainians to use their arms to hit targets deeper inside Russia than previously approved.
“As what Russia’s doing has changed, as the battlefield has changed, we’ve adapted,” Mr Blinken said at a news conference in Warsaw.
Mr Biden has allowed Ukraine to fire US-provided missiles across the border into Russia in self-defence, but has largely limited the distance they can be fired.
“One of the purposes of my visit to Kyiv yesterday was to hear from our Ukrainian partners what they believe they need now to deal with the current battlefield, including in eastern Ukraine and other parts of the country,” Mr Blinken said. “I can tell you that as we go forward we will do exactly what we have already done, which is we will adjust as necessary… in order to defend against Russian aggression.”
He delivered a similar message in Kyiv a day earlier. In both cases, the language was similar to that which he used in May, shortly before the Us gave the green light for Ukrainian use of US weapons just inside Russian territory.
The diplomatic visit unfolded as Russia’s bigger and better-equipped army bears down on Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region and conducts aerial attacks on cities across the country using missiles, glide bombs and drones that claim many civilian casualties.
Nato member Poland, which shares a border with Ukraine, has been supportive of the Ukrainians and Mr Blinken heard requests for easing weapons-use restrictions from Polish foreign minister Radek Sikorski.
Mr Sikorski argued that Ukraine should be allowed to use western weapons against Russia in self-defence, because “Russia is committing war crimes by attacking civilian targets”.
“Missiles that hit these civilian targets are fired from bomber aircraft from over the territory of Russia. These bombers take off from airfields on Russia’s territory,” Mr Sikorski said. “A victim of aggression has the right to defend itself.”
“So I believe that Ukraine has the right to use western weapons to prevent war crimes,” Mr Sikorski added.
Mr Blinken also met in Warsaw with President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who share Mr Sikorski’s pro-Ukraine stance.
On Wednesday, Mr Blinken and Mr Lammy announced that the United States and Britain had pledged nearly 1.5 billion dollars in additional aid to Ukraine during their visit to Kyiv.
Mr Blinken announced more than 700 million dollars in humanitarian aid, while Mr Lammy confirmed that his country would provide another 782 million dollars in assistance and loan guarantees.
Much of the effort was aimed at bolstering the energy grid that Russia has repeatedly pounded ahead of an expected difficult winter.
Ukraine’s wish list is long and non-military assistance is certainly on it, but Ukrainian officials made clear their most important ask is for easing restrictions on where Western weapons can be used.
Air-raid sirens sounded repeatedly during the visit, causing delays in their schedule and forcing them to cancel a wreath-laying ceremony.
Mr Blinken said he would bring the discussion with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about the missiles “back to Washington to brief the president” and that Mr Biden and Sir Keir will “no doubt” talk about the issue when they meet in Washington.
Relations between Ukraine and its western partners have been increasingly strained by Kyiv’s repeated appeals for the West’s authorisation to use long-range weapons from the United States and other allies to strike targets deeper inside Russia.
That issue took on added urgency after Russia’s latest reported acquisition of ballistic missiles from Iran, but western leaders have so far baulked at Ukraine’s request, fearing that, if granted, it could escalate the war.
Mr Zelensky has said that he has a plan for victory which includes several components, including goals Ukraine hopes to achieve on the battlefield as well as diplomatic and economic aims.
In late August he described Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region as part of that plan, saying it had removed the Russian threat from Ukraine’s Kharkiv, Sumy and Chernihiv regions.
