NATO allies' support grows for Ukrainian strikes in Russia

Support grew among NATO allies on Friday for using Western-donated weapons to strike inside Russian territory, while NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg downplayed Kremlin warnings of an escalation.

Germany said it had given Ukraine permission to fire German-delivered weapons at targets in Russia, a day after U.S. officials said Washington had partially lifted similar restrictions to allow Ukraine to defend its eastern Kharkiv region, which borders Russia.

Kiev has the "right under international law to defend itself" against attacks coming from inside Russia, close to the border with Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said.

"To this end, it can also use the weapons supplied for this purpose... including those supplied by us," he said.

Washington had previously resisted allowing Ukraine to use longer-range U.S. weapons to attack Russian territory, fearing it could drag NATO into a direct conflict with Russia.

The Kremlin accused the West on Thursday of "entering a new round of escalations in tensions".

But NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg, speaking to reporters at a meeting of alliance foreign ministers in Prague, responded: "This is part of efforts by President [Vladimir] Putin and Moscow to prevent NATO allies from supporting Ukraine to defend themselves."

"Ukraine has the right for self defense and we have the right to help Ukraine," he said.

Some NATO member states are opposed, however.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said that "for Italy, it is impossible to use our weapons outside of Ukraine".

"We are not fighting against Russia. We're defending Ukraine and it is not the same," he said.

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