The False Promise of Ukraine’s Deep Strikes Into Russia
Foreign AffairsAug 22
Ukraine Pushes for Lifting Restrictions on Weapons Use Inside Russia
Above: Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba on October 2, 2023. Image copyright: Yevhenii Zavhorodnii/Global Images Ukraine/Contributor/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's foreign minister, on Thursday urged states to pressure Britain and the US into dropping their restrictions on long-range weapons provided to Ukraine so that they can strike "legitimate" targets deep inside Russia.
Speaking to reporters ahead of an EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Belgium, Kuleba said: "I'm calling on the European Union to play a role and to make their point very clearly and strongly that this is something that needs to be done now if we want to maintain the momentum."
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Lifting Ukraine's restrictions on weapons would allow it to better defend itself by striking Russian sites that launch missiles into Ukraine with impunity. This would help Ukraine's war effort, save Ukrainian lives, and push Putin to negotiate for peace. This is a sound geostrategic and military strategy from Kyiv.
Pro-Russia narrative
The US needs to think long and hard about the decision on whether to allow Ukraine to strike Russia with long-range weapons. Ukraine knows the only way it can possibly win this conflict is by drawing in the US and UK into the fight and that's what it hopes to achieve by striking Russia with their weapons — even if it leads to the outbreak of World War III.