Translated with AI
The United States, Germany, Great Britain and France have lifted restrictions on the use of weapons supplied to Ukraine against targets deep inside Russian territory. This was stated by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at a forum organized by the WDR television and radio company. "There are no longer any restrictions on the range of weapons transferred to Ukraine – neither by the British, nor by the French, nor by us. And there are none by the Americans either," Merz emphasized.
According to him, the Ukrainian army can now not only defend itself, but also strike at Russian military facilities in the rear. Previously, such actions were severely limited. Now, Ukraine has the opportunity to use long-range weapons to strike at targets behind the front line, the Chancellor noted: "This is a decisive factor."
Friedrich Merz also pointed out that Vladimir Putin sees any ceasefire proposals as a sign of weakness. "If even the idea of a meeting in the Vatican is not approved by Moscow, we must be prepared for this war to last longer than any of us would like or can imagine," he added.
The Chancellor particularly emphasized the need to supply Kiev with long-range precision weapons. According to Clash Report , Ukraine is expected to receive 100 to 150 Taurus cruise missiles in the near future — the German equivalent of the British-French Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG.
During a recent visit to Kiev, Merz said that the German government would stop publishing information about the composition and volume of military aid to Ukraine. As Reuters previously reported, citing an informed source, Berlin intends to introduce a policy of "strategic ambiguity" to exclude the possibility of Moscow receiving data that could be used for military purposes. In particular, the agency wrote, Germany will no longer maintain or update the open list of weapons supplied to Ukraine, which existed on the official website of the German government since June 21, 2022.
Western countries provided Kyiv with long-range weapons after the outbreak of the full-scale war, but accompanied this with strict restrictions on their use on Russian territory. However, in November 2024, the administration of then US President Joe Biden for the first time gave permission for Ukrainian forces to use ATACMS missiles to strike targets in Russia. Shortly thereafter, there were reports that similar restrictions on the use of British and French Storm Shadow and SCALP cruise missiles were lifted, although there was no official confirmation from the governments of these countries.
As for Germany, the former Chancellor Olaf Scholz shied away from the issue of supplying Taurus missiles to Ukraine. In April 2025, even before taking office, Friedrich Merz said that he would support such a transfer, but only if agreed upon with EU partners.
