Germanys Merz Announces Elimination of Range Restrictions on Western Weapons for Ukraine, Allowing Strikes on Russian Targets

Kyiv’s allies in the West are no longer placing any limitations on the range of weapons provided to Ukraine for targeting Russian military sites, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated on Monday.

“There are no longer any restrictions on the range of weapons supplied to Ukraine, whether from the British, the French, us, or the Americans,” Merz informed WDR.

“This signifies that Ukraine can now defend itself more effectively, including the capability to strike military positions within Russia, which was not an option until now,” he added.

Initially, Ukraine’s Western partners restricted the deployment of long-range missiles to striking targets within Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia. However, following the deployment of North Korean troops to assist Russian forces in the Kursk region—which Ukrainian forces had targeted in August—both the United States and Britain permitted attacks on Russian territory last November.

President Vladimir Putin criticized this move at the time, warning that it would indicate NATO is “at war with Russia.” He subsequently expanded Russia’s nuclear doctrine, allowing for the use of nuclear weapons in response to massive conventional attacks or assaults by non-nuclear states supported by nuclear powers.

In addition to the U.S. and the U.K., France has also provided long-range missiles to Ukraine. Merz had earlier indicated he would reverse the ban imposed by his predecessor, Olaf Scholz, regarding the transfer of German-made Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine.

France has yet to confirm whether it has authorized Ukraine to use the weapons it supplied for attacks against targets in Russia.

Later on Monday, the Kremlin remarked that the decision to increase long-range assaults with Western weaponry could jeopardize the direct peace talks that began with Ukraine earlier this month.

“If such decisions have indeed been made, they likely contradict our efforts for a political settlement,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Andrei Kartapolov, chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee, characterized Merz’s recent statements as a response to Ukraine’s “pleas for assistance.”

“This is nothing new for us; we’ve anticipated this possibility for quite some time and are prepared for it,” he told reporters in the Kremlin pool.

“We are successfully conducting the special military operation, and Ukraine is currently suffering losses,” Kartapolov stated, using the Kremlin’s preferred terminology for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that began in 2022.