The White House on the eve of the meeting between Biden and Starmer: No change in position on Ukraine and long-range weapons is expected

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Friday that the US is taking Putin's warning seriously, but that this is not its new position.

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Kirby, Photo: Reuters
Kirby, Photo: Reuters
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

The United States of America (USA) does not plan to announce a new policy on Ukraine and its use of long-range missiles on Friday, the White House announced.

"There is no change in our position on the provision of long-range strike capabilities that Ukraine would use inside Russia. I do not expect any significant announcement in this regard," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said ahead of US President Joseph Biden's meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Friday at the White House

Biden and Starmer are meeting in light of increased pressure from Ukraine to ease restrictions on the use of long-range weapons to attack Russia, provided by the US and Britain.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Thursday that Ukraine's use of long-range weapons would lead NATO to war with Moscow.

Kirby said on Friday that the US is taking Putin's warning seriously, but that this is not their new position.

"That's rhetoric we've heard from him before. He's clearly shown that he's capable of aggression, and that's why we take those statements seriously," Kirby said.

Ukrainian officials renewed their pleas to be allowed to use long-range missiles provided by the West against targets deep inside Russia during a visit to Kiev this week by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and British Foreign Secretary David Lemmy.

Blinken said he has "no doubt" Biden and Starmer will discuss the issue during their visit, noting that the US has adapted and will "adjust as needed" as Russia's battlefield strategy has changed.

The language is similar to what Blinken said in May, shortly before the US allowed Ukraine to use US-provided weapons on Russian territory. The range is largely limited to cross-border targets deemed to pose a direct threat, due to concerns about further escalation of the conflict.

In addition to Blinken, Biden previously also hinted that a decision on the change could be underway. Asked by reporters earlier this week whether he was ready to ease arms restrictions on Ukraine, he replied: "We're dealing with that now."

On Thursday, Putin warned that allowing a long-range strike "would mean that NATO countries, the US and European countries are at war with Russia... If this is so, then, taking into account the change in the very essence of this conflict, we will make appropriate decisions based on the threats that will be created for us".

His remarks were in line with the narrative the Kremlin has been actively promoting since the start of the war in Ukraine, accusing NATO countries of de facto participation in the conflict and threatening retaliation.

Earlier this year, Putin warned that Russia could provide long-range weapons to others to attack Western targets in response to NATO allies allowing Ukraine to use their weapons to attack Russian territory, saying it would "mark their direct participation in the war against the Russian Federation and we reserve the right to act in the same way".

Starmer, responding to the Russian leader's comments on Thursday, said on his way to the US that Britain was not seeking any conflict with Russia.

"Russia started this conflict. Russia illegally invaded Ukraine. Russia could end this conflict immediately," Starmer told reporters. "Ukraine has a right to self-defense, and obviously we fully supported Ukraine's right to self-defense — as you know, we provide them with the opportunity to train."

"But we are not looking for any conflict with Russia — that is not our intention in the least," Starmer said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been pressing US and allied military leaders to go much further. He argues that the US must allow Ukraine to target Russian air bases and launch sites far from the border, as Russia has stepped up attacks on Ukraine's power grid and utilities ahead of the coming winter.

Zelensky also wants more long-range weapons from the US, including ATACMS tactical missile systems, for strikes in Russia.

ATACMS would not be the answer to the main threat Ukraine faces from long-range Russian cruise bombs, which are fired from more than 300 kilometers away, beyond the range of ATACMS, said Lt. Col. Charlie Dietz, a Pentagon spokesman.

U.S. officials also do not believe they have enough weapons systems available to provide Ukraine with a number that would fundamentally change conditions on the ground, one U.S. official said.

During a meeting of allied defense ministers last Sunday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he did not believe providing long-range weapons systems to Ukraine would change the game in the attrition war. He noted that Ukraine was already able to carry out strikes inside Russia with its own domestically produced systems, including drones.

"I don't believe that one ability will be decisive and I stand by that comment," Austin said.

"For now, the policy has not changed," Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon's press secretary, said Thursday.

Starmer said he was visiting Washington for "strategic meetings to discuss Ukraine and the Middle East." It is the prime minister's second meeting with Biden since his center-left government was elected in July.

It comes after Britain broke with the US last week by suspending some arms exports to Israel over the risk they could be used to violate international law. Both countries downplayed their differences on the issue.

The meeting between Biden and Starmer also comes ahead of this month's annual meeting of global leaders at the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting in the Oval Office was scheduled in part to help the two leaders compare positions on the war in Ukraine, stalled efforts to reach a cease-fire agreement in Gaza and other issues ahead of the UN meeting.

The White House has also sought to emphasize the link between the war in Ukraine and the Middle East conflict that erupted after Iran-backed Hamas militants in Gaza launched attacks on Israel on October 7.

The Biden administration said this Sunday that Iran had recently supplied Russia with short-range ballistic weapons for use against Ukraine, a transfer that White House officials worry will allow Russia to use more of its arsenal for targets far beyond Ukraine's front lines while using Iran's warheads for closer range targets.

In turn, the US administration says Russia is moving closer to Iran, including providing nuclear and space technology.

"This is obviously deeply troubling," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said of the missile transfer. "And it certainly speaks to the way this partnership threatens European security and how it illustrates Iran's destabilizing influence that now reaches far beyond the Middle East."

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