The opinion of Nato allies is shifting towards allowing Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike military targets on Russian soil, the Czech foreign minister said on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters, Jan Lipavsky said there was a growing belief that it was better to allow Kyiv to destroy Russian aircraft before they can take-off armed with bombs destined for Ukrainian cities.
He said it was right to relax restrictions on weapons and show “strong resolve” in response to Russia’s changing tactics and escalations, including attacks on Poland and the UK, since Vladimir Putin’s re-election.
The minister also dismissed concerns that slacker measures would result in the war spreading beyond Ukraine’s borders.
Mr Lipavsky said: “The message is simple… The plane is flying with rockets, it’s better that the plane is not flying at all. If it’s flying, it’s better to shoot it down, rather than trying to shoot down rockets flying over Ukraine.
“We have to make use of logic and, also, international law, and the charter of the UN clearly says that you can protect yourself from aggression.
I understand those concerns, I understand there are weapon systems that can be used quite far away. We have the discussions, but I feel that we are even moving on that in the international sphere.”
In response to Kremlin threats of retaliation, he added: “Russia has decided to escalate. It is Putin after the inauguration, he feels strongly. He started an offensive in Kharkiv. We saw the provocations at the Narva River, the attempts of sabotage, some of them successful, on the territories of Poland and the UK.
“I’m sure that we will see more of this escalation, so we need to repeat properly and definitely shouldn’t be afraid, but show strong resolve to defend ourselves.”