The United Kingdom will not act independently in granting Ukraine permission to use long-range weapons to strike at Russian territory, as American guidance systems play a crucial role in this decision. This was reported by The Times, citing sources, according to Komersant ukrainskyi
It is known that the British Storm Shadow missiles, which Ukraine relies on for their range, are equipped with American guidance systems. It is difficult to say whether this means automatic approval of any decisions by the US in the case of Britain. However, according to The Times, the UK is not going to act on its own this time.
At the same time, the British authorities are being pressured to grant appropriate permits to Ukraine. Five former UK defence ministers and one former prime minister have called on British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to take decisive action at his own discretion. They warned that further delay would only support Russia’s position.
However, the decision has been made, the newspaper claims, and the UK will not allow Ukraine to use long-range missiles against Russian targets without US approval. British officials have suggested that the US may give its approval for the use of long-range weapons at the UN General Assembly in New York, although there are still internal disagreements within the Biden administration on this issue.
The general debate at the UN General Assembly is scheduled to begin on 24 September.
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Western weapons and permits for their use
As you know, the United States(and Germany after them) allow the use of weapons provided by them only for strikes on the border territories of Russia. This permission was granted by US President Joe Biden only at the end of May, and before that, strikes on Russian territory with US weapons were prohibited altogether.
However, towards the end of June, the US side unofficially stated that the restrictions “do not apply to geography or a certain radius”. This was interpreted as meaning that Ukraine could allegedly strike at those facilities and territories from which attacks on Ukraine are directly directed, even if they are deeper than the border areas. But it has recently emerged that this may also mean that Ukraine is not allowed to strike certain targets even in the occupied territories.
Experts say that border strikes will not change the situation at the front, so Zelenskyy is asking his partners for permission to use their weapons to strike Russian territory. Some Western countries have already given such permission.