Pro-Ukraine House Republican chairmen said Friday that President Joe Biden’s authorization for Ukraine to use U.S. weapons to attack specific targets on Russian territory is a half-measure.
US officials said President Biden had given Ukraine “limited” permission to attack Russia, Fox News reported.
“The President recently directed my team to allow Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied weapons for counter-battery purposes in the Kharkiv area to enable Ukraine to strike back against Russian forces currently attacking or preparing to attack. Our policy of prohibiting the use of ATACMS or long-range attacks within Russian territory remains unchanged.”
Biden granted the request after lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-Ohio), pressured the president to allow Ukraine to attack Russia with U.S.-supplied weapons.
This marks a further escalation of Ukraine’s long-running conflict with Russia.
But in a joint statement, Turner, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Alabama) and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Mike McCaul (R-Texas) said Biden’s decision was a half-hearted move.
This decision should have been made before Russia’s recent Kharkov offensive, not after it. However, the Biden Administration’s continuing insecurity has hampered Ukraine’s response, forcing it to stand by and watch as Russian forces prepare for an imminent attack just across the border. Moreover, by leaking to the press that the policy shift only applies to certain U.S.-provided weapons in limited areas inside Russia, the Administration has not told Russia exactly how to effectively adapt to this policy change, undermining the military effectiveness of the decision. To win this war of self-defense against Russian aggression, Ukraine must be allowed to use U.S.-provided weapons against legitimate military targets inside Russia, not just along its border near Kharkov. Again, President Biden’s plodding and half-hearted policies are prolonging this conflict without giving Ukraine a decisive advantage on the battlefield and without bringing Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table as soon as possible.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin Warned NATO countries would face “serious consequences” if they allowed Ukraine to launch armed attacks.
of The New York Times report Biden got Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to promise never to fire U.S.-supplied weapons into Russian territory “to avoid World War III.”
Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter. Sean Moran 3.
