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French President Emmanuel Macron said Ukraine should be allowed to use weapons supplied by Western allies to attack positions inside Russia, but on one condition.
Macron said: Press conference On Tuesday, Ukraine said it should be able to target Russian military bases that could be used directly in attacks on Ukraine.
“I believe we should be allowed to neutralise the military installations from which the missiles were fired, and essentially the military installations that Ukraine is being attacked,” he told reporters.
Macron held up a map showing military bases within Russia’s borders where Russian forces are massing and launching offensive operations.
“As you can see, Ukrainian territory is being attacked from Russian bases,” he said, adding: “If we say, ‘stay away from the points where the missiles are fired,’ how do we explain to the Ukrainian people that they have to defend their towns around Kharkov and everything they see?”
Macron said the message NATO was currently sending to Ukraine was that “we give you weapons, but you cannot defend yourself.”
His comments come as other world leaders are calling for a change in policy.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told The Economist last week that some restrictions should be lifted because it would be too difficult for Ukrainian forces to defend themselves along the border with Russia.
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell echoed Stoltenberg’s call, adding that NATO countries must balance the risks of escalating tensions with the need for Ukrainian people to defend their country.
In recent weeks, Ukraine has had to contend with a series of Russian military offensives, particularly in Kharkiv, which borders Russia in the northeast of the country.
A Ukrainian military commander told The Times of London last week that Ukrainian soldiers in Kharkiv had been forced to watch and unable to attack Russian forces massing across the border, and subsequently suffered preventable losses.
Although the United States is one of the largest donors of military aid to Ukraine, Have repetition Said Russia will not allow Ukraine to use the weapons it has supplied to attack targets on Russian territory.
But there are signs that thinking is changing. The New York Times U.S. officials are reportedly discussing repealing the rules, which Ukraine claims severely hinders its ability to defend itself.
According to Macron, Ukraine’s NATO allies should allow Ukraine to attack objects inside Russia, but not civilians or other military targets.