Real-world policy: Letting Ukraine deploy weapons into Russia is just common sense

The Armed Forces of Ukraine has previously been denied approval to use Western-supplied weapons against military targets inside Russian territory. This latest advice by Stoltenberg to reverse that restriction is a common-sense decision and evidence of international policy heading in the right direction with regards to the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

Several Western governments, including the US, have previously outlined restrictions that American and other weapons should not be used by Ukrainian forces against targets in Russia to limit possible escalation by Russian leadership and opposing civilian casualties.

However, in reality, that now understood-to-be-misguided decision has denied Ukraine it’s full ability to defend itself and led to significant difficulty in military planning and showcased a lack of determined resolve to see the war through on the part of Western allies. NATO allies have, until now, effectively tied one arm behind the back of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

That could soon change as earlier this month, Russia opened new frontlines into the Kharkiv Oblast region of Ukraine along the border, which could potentially fast-track removal of weapons restrictions to meet urgent defence priorities.

“My message is that I think we should now consider those restrictions, because by having too many restrictions, we are tying one hand of the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” Stoltenberg said during an interview with The Economist.

“Especially now when the fighting is going on in Kharkiv, close to the border ... it makes it very hard to defend themselves.

“This is a war of aggression .... Ukraine has the right to defend themselves, that includes striking targets in Russian territory.

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“The time has come ... This is self-defence, it’s upheld in the United Nations charter. It’s legal, it’s legitimate.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron has also echoed the sentiment and assured Ukraine that the UK has no problems with supplied equipment being used to strike Russia internally.

“Ukraine has that right. Just as Russia is striking inside Ukraine, you can quite understand why Ukraine feels the need to make sure it’s defending itself," he said during an interview in downtown Kyiv.

The Western weaponry being referred to in these discussions are most likely missile and artillery systems such as HIMARS and M270 MLRS supplied by the US and the UK; artillery such as M777 howitzers supplied by Australia, Canada and the US; as well as long-range strike missiles supplied by France, the UK and the US (SCALP, Storm Shadow and ATACMS, respectively).

Not only do the current restrictions give a significant tactical advantage by safeguarding Russian cross-border military bases, staging areas and airfields, they also produce confusion for military personnel on the ground who are tasking with carrying out the defence of Ukraine while operating without clear and practical guidelines on using Western supplied equipment.

For example, if a Russian MIG-29 fighter jet roars over the border (or close to it) between Ukraine and Russia, it unleashes an air-to-ground missile at Ukrainian forces and then retreats back into Russian territory, are Ukrainians cleared to engage? It’s a tricky situation to take effective and prompt action, before factoring whether it also sanctioned to strike that same fighter jet as it is taking off and landing at its home base in Russia.

“We saw their military sitting one or two kilometres from the border inside Russia and there was nothing we could do about that,” said Ukrainian special parliamentary commission on arms and munitions head Oleksandra Ustinova, speaking to Politico this month about recent Russian military build-ups on the border.

Earlier this month, on 27 May, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly adopted the “Standing With Ukraine Until Victory” declaration in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Ukraine’s delegation at the assembly reportedly declared that weapons restrictions preventing armed forces from striking military targets in Russia had hindered efforts to defend the country from recent military advances.

“They need our help. Not in two years. Not in two months. Not even in two weeks. They need it now. We must speed up and step up. Give Ukraine everything it needs,” according to NATO PA president Michal Szczerba.

“Ukraine can only defend itself if it can attack Russia’s supply lines and Russian bases of operation. It is time to recognise this reality and let Ukraine do what it must.

“NATO will be significantly weakened, losing credibility, if we continue assisting with half measures.”

Under the NATO PA declaration, governments and parliaments of the North Atlantic alliance were urged to urgently step-up military assistance to Ukraine and critically, “To support Ukraine in its international right to defend itself by lifting some restrictions on the use of weapons provided by NATO allies to strike legitimate targets in Russia.”

The US has previously rallied against those same proposed changes, however individual members of the US Congress have called for a “common-sense” reversal of that policy. US House Speaker Mike Johnson recently endorsed a move to enable Ukraine to strike targets within Russian territory with US-supplied weapons.

“(Ukraine needs) to be able to fight back. And I think, us trying to micromanage the effort there is not a good policy for us,” Johnson said during an interview with Voice Of America on 22 May.

Russian officials have maintained rock-hard opposition against any moves allowing Ukraine to use Western weapons inside Russian borders, calling the move a direct confrontation with Russia and precursor to global war.

Final Thoughts

It’s time that NATO and the United States of America walked the walk, instead of talking the talk in regard to allowing Western-supplied weapons to be used by Ukraine against military targets within Russia. The decision is long overdue and an active impediment to the Armed Forces of Ukraine defending their country from Russian military forces.

Removing the restrictions would signal determined resolve from Western allied nations that there is real conviction in supporting the defence of Ukraine, but also confidence in cutting loose it’s countrymen and women to decide their own fate by choosing their own targets over the border.