Ukraine urged its allies to allow of Kiev to use Western-supplied weapons to strike inside Russia and to abandon an official position some of them have held during Russia's 27-month full-scale invasion.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with "Reuters" on May 20 that talks had taken place with Kiev's allies about using their weapons to strike Russian military targets on the border and further into Russia.
He said the talks had produced "nothing positive," but some partners had changed their rhetoric on the issue.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned NATO members on Tuesday that they were playing with fire by proposing to allow Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike targets in Russia.
Here's what Kiev's partners have said so far:
Then-chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley said last year: "I can say that we have asked the Ukrainians not to use US-supplied equipment for direct attacks against Russia.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a briefing on Tuesday that Washington was aware of Zelensky's comments on the matter.
"I would tell you that there is no change in our policy at this stage. We do not encourage or authorize the use of US-supplied weapons to strike Russia."
"We don't want this to escalate in any form," press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre told reporters at a White House briefing.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has called on members of the Western military alliance to lift restrictions on the use of their weapons to allow Ukraine to strike "legitimate military targets" in Russia.
"The time has come to think about whether it would be right to remove some of the restrictions that were imposed, because now we see that especially in the Kharkiv region, the front line and the border are more or less the same," Stoltenberg said.< /p>
NATO as an organization does not supply weapons to Ukraine.
During a visit to Kiev on May 3, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that Ukraine could use weapons provided by London to strike targets in Russia and that it was up to Kiev to do so.
p>"Ukraine has this right," he said. "Just as Russia strikes inside Ukraine, you can totally understand why Ukraine feels the need to make sure it defends itself.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that Ukraine should be allowed to strike military sites in Russia that Moscow is using to attack Ukraine.
"We think we should allow them to neutralize military sites from which missiles are launched, military sites from which Ukraine is attacked," he said at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
"But we must not allow them to hit other targets in Russia and civilian or other military sites in Russia.
When asked about this, Scholz said: "Ukraine has every opportunity under international law for what it is doing. This should be said explicitly."
"I find it strange when some people argue that it should not be left to defend itself and take measures that are appropriate for it.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen echoed the words of Scholz and Stoltenberg in comments to TV2 on Tuesday.
"You are welcome to use what we have donated to Ukraine also outside Ukraine - that is, against Russian targets - if it is within international law,", she said.
"The NATO Secretary General was very clear on this a few hours ago that it is within the rules when you go to war because it is Ukraine that is being attacked by Russia.
However, she did not say whether this would apply to the F-16 fighter jets that Ukraine is due to receive from Copenhagen in the summer.
In response to a request for comment, the Dutch defense ministry said on Wednesday that Ukraine must use donated weapons in accordance with international law.
"Furthermore, the Netherlands does not impose legal restrictions on the use of weapons delivered by the Netherlands over or on Russian soil," the statement said.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala told a briefing on Tuesday that statements on the matter by Stoltenberg and others were "absolutely logical".
"Ukraine is a country that defends itself against Russian aggression... and as the attacked country, it certainly has every right to use every opportunity for its defense.
Lithuania has voiced its support for Ukraine's right to strike targets in Russia.
"The way to respond to Russian aggression in Ukraine, and also in our countries, is to support and allow Ukraine to use the weapons it already has and the way it needs to use them," he said foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis on Monday
"This is how you manage escalation... this is how you stop Russia.
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics also agreed with Stoltenberg, telling CNN on Monday that it was a "critical moment" on Ukraine: "I think there is no rational, pragmatic reason not to allow Ukraine to use these weapons against Russia in the way that is most effective."
A day later, Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur called on X for Kiev's allies to "increase training of Ukrainian fighters (and allow Ukraine to strike military targets in Russia).