NATO Secretary General urges allies to reconsider weapon use restrictions for Ukraine

Jens Stoltenberg appealed to NATO countries to allow Ukraine to strike Russian military targets with the weapons they received from them. "Especially now when a lot of the fighting is going on in Kharkiv, close to the border, to deny Ukraine the possibility of using these weapons against legitimate military targets on Russian territory makes it very hard for them to defend themselves," said the head of the Alliance.

In the latest interview with "The Economist," the head of NATO, when asked about the war in Ukraine, stated that Russia is constantly attacking Ukraine and has the right to self-defence. In light of these reports, he appealed to the Alliance countries to consider lifting the current restrictions.

"The time has come for allies to consider whether they should lift some of the restrictions they have put on the use of weapons they have donated to Ukraine," said Jens Stoltenberg in an interview with "The Economist."

"Especially now when a lot of the fighting is going on in Kharkiv, close to the border, to deny Ukraine the possibility of using these weapons against legitimate military targets on Russian territory makes it very hard for them to defend themselves," he added.

Stoltenberg emphasized that he is aware of the possible escalation of the conflict. However, in his opinion, this decision aims to "prevent this war (from) becoming a full-fledged war between Russia and NATO in Europe." The NATO head also stressed that there would be no "intention to send NATO ground troops into Ukraine."

To date, The United States has opposed using Ukraine's weaponry to attack military targets in Russia. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom already gave the green light in early May to strike Russia from Ukrainian territory using weapons obtained from the British.