US won't change its policy on the possibility of Ukrainian strikes on Russia after the 8 July attack
Kirby said Ukraine is only allowed to strike near the Russian border
The United States will not allow Ukraine to launch more distant strikes on Russian territory after the deadly July 8 attack, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said during a briefing.
"There has been no change in our policy. You saw the president instruct Ukraine a few weeks ago that they can use U.S.-provided weapons to strike targets that are close to the border. That remains the case," Kirby told reporters on 8 July.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told PBS News in June that Ukraine is allowed to strike "wherever Russian troops cross the border from the Russian side to the Ukrainian side to try to take additional Ukrainian territory".
According to the SBU, the Russians used an X-101 cruise missile to strike Ukraine's largest children's hospital, Okhmatdyt. According to local authorities, at least two people were killed and 50 injured, including seven children.
Kirby added that this is part of Putin's "policy of hitting civilian infrastructure" and he "doesn't care if people are in hospitals or homes".
Across the country, more than 170 people were injured while at least 37 were killed in the July 8 Russian attack, President Zelenskiy said.
At the NATO summit, which officially begins on 9 July in Washington, there will be "a very strong set of signals and messages to Mr Putin that he cannot wait for NATO, he cannot wait for the United States. We are going to continue to support Ukraine," Kirby said.
As reported, amid the Russian attack, the NATO summit communiqué will be amended to call Ukraine's accession "irreversible". Earlier, the United States and Germany had been promoting the word "bridge" to Ukraine's NATO membership.
If you have read this article to the end, we hope that means it was useful for you.
We work to ensure that our journalistic and analytical work is of high quality, and we strive to perform it as competently as possible. This also requires financial independence. Support us for only UAH 196 per month.
Become a Mind subscriber for just USD 5 per month and support the development of independent business journalism!
You can unsubscribe at any time in your LIQPAY account or by sending us an email: [email protected]
