Ukrainian officials are making a new attempt to negotiate with the Biden administration to lift the ban on the use of US weapons for strikes inside Russia. Until now, the relevant US policy did not allow the Ukrainian Armed Forces to attack the positions of the Russian Armed Forces when the latter were preparing to attack the Kharkiv region. This was written by Politicoand reported by UNN.
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Ukraine pressures Biden to lift ban on using US weapons to strike Russia
It is noted that a group of Ukrainian parliamentarians is currently in Washington, D.C., to enlist the help of Congress in the issue of strikes on the territory of Russia.
So far, this has "handcuffed Ukraine's military operations as Kyiv tries to strike Russian military depots abroad," Politico notes.
The publication quotes comments from representatives of Ukraine.
We saw their military sitting one or two kilometers from the border inside Russia, and we could not do anything about it
The main problem now is the White House's policy of limiting our ability to strike military targets in Russia
Having realized these limitations, Russia was able to concentrate at least 30,000 troops and equipment on the border without fear of being hit by long-range tactical missile systems provided by the United States.
The Russian attack, according to Politico, also takes advantage of Ukraine's manpower shortages and the lack of adequately prepared defenses near Kharkiv.
In March, Vladimir Putin said that he was considering creating a buffer zone near Kharkiv to make it more difficult for Ukraine to launch small unmanned aerial vehicles targeting Russian oil infrastructure.
The Institute for the Study of War estimated on Monday that Russian troops have already captured several towns near the border and are destroying bridges to make it more difficult for Ukraine to counterattack. This indicates that Russian forces are prioritizing the creation of a "buffer zone" over deeper penetration.
ISW: російські війська на Харківському напрямку застосовують нову тактику15.05.24, 10:13