Under pressure, Biden allows Ukraine to use US weapons to strike inside Russia
The decision follows weeks of intense behind-the-scenes conversations with the Ukrainians, made even more urgent after Russia began a major assault on Kharkiv around May 10. Three days later, on May 13, Sullivan, Austin, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. held one of their regularly scheduled secure video conferences with their Ukrainian counterparts. Once again, the Ukrainians pressed Biden to lift US restrictions on firing into Russian territory, arguing that the president's concerns about escalation were overblown. But now, they said, the issue has become more urgent because the Russians are bombing civilian sites around Kharkiv from inside their border, knowing that the Ukrainians could not fully respond.After the meeting, officials said, Mr. Sull...