German Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejected Zelenskyʼs call to Western allies to shoot down Russian missiles and drones over the territory of Ukraine.
As reported by the DPA news agency, the head of the German government said this at a press conference after the summit of the European Political Community in Great Britain on the eve of July 18, writes Deutsche Welle.
Scholz also rejected Zelenskyʼs request to lift restrictions on the use of German weapons to strike targets on the territory of the Russian Federation.
Responding at a press conference to a question about whether other NATO countries have the same position on Zelenskyʼs calls as his, Scholz said that he "sees such a consensus that such steps are out of the question, and the United States has also been very clear about this".
At the summit, Volodymyr Zelensky called on Western partners to strengthen Ukraineʼs air defense and to lift restrictions on strikes by Western weapons against targets on the territory of Russia. According to him, these steps will not only eliminate some targets, but also reduce the Russian Federationʼs ability to continue the war against Ukraine.
Zelensky also mentioned that in April the partners helped Israel repel a massive combined strike by Iran.
"Missiles and drones are not ʼcarriers of state sovereigntyʼ, so collective will is needed to shoot them down, just as it was with the Iranian missiles and drones. I appeal to all of you, to all the leaders who are able to step up the necessary courage. These steps must be taken," he said.
Strikes with Western weapons deep into the Russian Federation
Against the background of a new Russian offensive on the Kharkiv region in May, Ukraine began to strongly call on its allies, in particular the United States, to cancel the ban on the use of weapons provided by them for attacks on Russian territory. First of all, high-ranking Ukrainian officials say that such a ban prevented Ukraine from attacking the positions of Russian troops when they were preparing that offensive. For example, the Ukrainian authorities watched the Russians gather near the border for weeks, but due to the policies of many allies, Ukraine was unable to use the weapons provided by them for a pre-emptive strike.
The NATO Parliamentary Assembly also called on the governments of the Alliance countries to allow Ukraine to strike military targets on the territory of Russia with Western weapons.
At the beginning of May 2024, the ex-minister of foreign affairs of Great Britain David Cameron said that Ukraine has the right to use weapons provided by London to strike targets in Russia, and it is up to Kyiv to decide whether to do so. However, it later became known that Ukraine still cannot hit targets on the territory of Russia with British long-range Storm Shadow missiles. Great Britain fears that allowing this will lead to an escalation of the war and could involve Britain in a conflict with Russia.
At the same time, Sweden granted Ukraine the full right to strike on the territory of the Russian Federation with weapons provided by Stockholm. Later, Poland also declared that there are no restrictions for Ukraine to strike Russia with weapons provided by Warsaw. Finland stated that it did not set any restrictions for Ukraine to strike the Russian Federation with its weapons. Norway also does not mind Ukraine hitting Russia with its weapons. In Denmark, it was noted that they will allow Ukraine to attack military targets in the Russian Federation with Danish F-16 fighters.
France also allowed Ukraine to strike Russia with weapons provided by Paris. However, there is a limitation — it can only be used against targets from which the Russians are attacking Ukraine.
On May 30, 2024, US President Joe Biden for the first time gave permission to Ukraine to strike on the territory of Russia with American weapons, but with certain restrictions — the strikes must be against military targets in the border regions to protect the Kharkiv region. Immediately after this, Germany agreed to give a similar relaxation of the ban, government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit told Der Spiegel. Although before the USA did not allow Ukraine to strike with its weapons along the border of the Russian Federation, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated that he was against Ukraineʼs use of weapons provided by Berlin for strikes on the territory of Russia.
In June, the Pentagon said that the Armed Forces of Ukraine can use American weapons to attack Russian forces anywhere on the border territory of the Russian Federation, and not only those bordering the Kharkiv region.
Ukraine can freely use American GMLRS rockets, HIMARS artillery missile systems and other artillery. However, the authorization does not extend to long-range ATACMS surface-to-surface missiles.
After the missile attack on "Okhmatdyt", the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk called on the USA and other Western countries, which have not yet done so, to lift the restrictions on strikes with their weapons on the territory of the Russian Federation. US National Security Adviser John Kirby responded by saying that even after the attack on the childrenʼs hospital, the White House will not lift the restrictions on the Armed Forces of Ukraine to strike Russian territory with American weapons — Ukraine can use American weapons only for strikes on the border of the Russian Federation, from where it attacks, in particular, Kharkiv region.
The Pentagon then explained that the US is limiting Ukraineʼs strikes deep into Russia with American weapons because of possible "unforeseen consequences" and the possibility of the war spreading beyond the borders of Ukraine.