Ukraine requests long-range weapons from U.S., U.K.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday met in Warsaw with the Polish president and other leaders to cap his three-nation tour of Europe. He traveled to Poland after spending a day in Kyiv with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksyy petitioned the leaders for permission to use missiles provided by the United States and Britain to strike targets farther inside Russia than previously approved. In America, Democratic and Republican lawmakers have also called on President Joe Biden to lift restrictions preventing Ukraine from launching missiles deep into enemy territory.

What have international leaders said about the request? Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski on Thursday said the West should lift restrictions on the use of long-range weapons against Russia. He argued that Ukraine should be allowed to use the weapons in self-defense because Russia is committing war crimes by attacking civilian targets. Biden is scheduled to meet with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday to discuss a range of international issues, including the war in Ukraine. Russia this week launched a counteroffensive in its Kursk border region against Ukrainian forces who invaded more than a month ago. The Russian Defense Ministry on Thursday claimed its forces had recaptured 10 settlements in the region that fell under Ukrainian control. 

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