EU Diplomacy Chief Josep Borrell hopes that European states will follow Washington's decision to allow Ukraine to use missiles on Russian territory. He said this on Tuesday, arriving at a meeting of EU defense ministers, UNN reports.
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"Yesterday, the United States made an important decision that I certainly applaud. After long discussions, President Biden authorized the use of long-range weapons [up to] 300 kilometers deep into Russian territory. This is very good news for Ukrainians, they have been asking for this. Now the United States has granted this authorization," Borrell said.
The head of EU diplomacy noted that "in Europe, this is a national competence.
Some member states are doing it openly, while others are doing it silently. Others, yesterday, said nothing - but I am sure they will follow the example of the United States to allow Ukrainians to use their weapons to fight Russians on Russian territory. This is from Russian territory, where they are being attacked. [This proposal] is fully in line with international law. So I think we will discuss this today. I hope that all member states will follow the decision of the United States
When asked how long it might take to follow the US decision, he replied: "I don't know." "Let's see the discussion today," Borrell said.
The EU diplomat also called on Europeans to continue military support for Ukraine without waiting for US President-elect Donald Trump's possible decisions on the matter.
"Europeans cannot be in a reactive mode. They cannot sit and wait to see what the Americans will do and then react. (...) We cannot wait for Trump to make a decision. Our support for Ukraine must continue. We will see what happens, we don't know what will happen. But now, today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, people are fighting and dying on the battlefield. They are not speculating. They are risking their lives. So today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, we need to continue to support them. And then we will see what happens," Borrell emphasized.