Ukraine should also be able to use Western weapons in Russia

Ukraine finds itself in an increasingly desperate situation in its defense against Russia. To avoid losing the war, the country still needs all the help the West has to offer, and the urgency is increasing every day. This also includes permission to use Western weapons against military targets in Russia.

Because the Russian army has no regard for civilian casualties in its brutal war of aggression. According to UN figures, more than 10,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed since February 2022 – and the number will continue to rise. The Ukrainian city of Kharkiv has been under constant Russian fire for weeks. Just a few days ago, several people were killed when a Russian missile hit a printing plant there.

Defending against such attacks does not just mean attacking and repelling Russian forces on their own Ukrainian territory. Ukraine – and that is its right as an attacked state – also sets its sights on military targets on Russian territory. However, so far this is not allowed with the weapons that Germany, the US and other Western countries supply to the country. The Ukrainian defense is therefore severely limited.

The recent demand by Anton Hofreiter, member of the Green Party in the Bundestag, to lift this restriction and, for example, to allow the defense of Russian fighter jets in Russian airspace, is therefore sensible. There is also discussion in the US about allowing the Ukrainians to use American weapons on Russian territory.

Such a decision alone would not turn the tide for Ukraine. But it could at least help to better protect the Ukrainian population in cities close to the border, such as Kharkiv.