Zelensky confirmed that Western partners have not yet allowed Ukraine to strike deep into Russia

Western partners have not yet given Ukraine final permission for long-range strikes with their weapons deep into Russia, but Ukraine continues to work on this.

This was reported by the presidential spokesman Serhii Nikiforov on the air of the telethon.

"First of all, it is important to understand that the Russians themselves will be the first to learn about the permission to strike deep into Russian territory. They will be the first to find out, and an official announcement will be made only later," Nikiforov said.

According to him, there is currently no final decision of the partners regarding such a permit, however, President Volodymyr Zelensky has held negotiations with all parties on which this decision depends, including Italy, France, Great Britain and the United States.

Also, the spokesperson said that there is a "very strong urgent request" from Ukraine to partners with arguments about what in practice would give permission to strike deep into Russian territory with long-range weapons.

"Thatʼs why there is this huge demand, this huge request, and we hope that the partners will give in," he concluded.

Ban on attacks of Ukraine deep into Russia with Western weapons

Ukraine has long been asking its allies to allow their weapons to be used for long-range strikes deep into Russia. For such purposes, Ukraineʼs arsenal includes, in particular, American surface-to-surface ATACMS long-range missiles, British Storm Shadow long-range missiles, and their French counterpart Scalp.

However, none of these countries gave Ukraine permission to use its weapons for attacks deep into the Russian Federation. The US fears a possible escalation against the background of this decision. They also believe that lifting restrictions on long-range strikes will have no strategic significance in the war, because Russia has moved its most important targets, including aircraft, away from the border and made them inaccessible for strikes. And Great Britain cannot allow such strikes to Ukraine due to resistance from the USA.

US intelligence believes that allowing Ukraine to strike deep into Russia could provoke Russian attacks on American and European bases or increased sabotage, The New York Times wrote.