Kiev seeks US permission to use long-range missiles to hit Russian air bases – The Irish Times

Ukraine has accused Russia and China of seeking to undermine this month’s “global peace summit” and urged Washington to allow it to use US-supplied long-range missiles to attack air bases in Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said more than a hundred states and organizations have agreed to attend the June 15-16 summit in Switzerland, to which Russia has not been invited. Kiev hopes to reach a global consensus on its plan to end the war and then present it to Moscow at a subsequent international meeting.

“The United States is in contact with a number of states and is encouraging them to participate in the peace summit. With China it is unfortunately the opposite; today the country is trying to prevent it from coming to the peace summit,” Zelenskiy said on Sunday at the Shangri-La Dialogue forum in Singapore, Asia’s largest security conference.

“Unfortunately, Russia is doing everything it can to disrupt the peace summit, by using Chinese influence in the region and also by using Chinese diplomats. It is a shame that such a big, independent and powerful country like China is a tool in the hands of (Vladimir) Putin,” he added, referring to Russia’s autocratic leader who launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 .

( Ukraine welcomes permission to use US-supplied weapons to hit targets in Russia )

The West says China is helping the Kremlin overcome sanctions and boost weapons production by flowing large quantities of “dual-use” products to Russia – electronic products and other goods that have civilian and military uses.

“With China’s support for Russia, the war will last longer and that is bad for the whole world,” Zelenskiy said. “You cannot say that we accept the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and at the same time stand on the side of the country that violates the principles of the UN Charter and the…sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.”

Beijing portrays itself as an impartial observer and fair mediator who could help end the war while also deepening what it calls an “unrestricted” relationship with Russia.

“We have never supplied weapons to any of the parties in the conflict. We have tightened controls on dual-use exports and have never done anything to fan the flames. We firmly stand on the side of peace and dialogue,” Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun said at the forum in Singapore.

Beijing said last week it would not send a representative to the summit in Switzerland because “China has always insisted that an international peace conference must be approved by both Russia and Ukraine, with the equal participation of all parties.”

Ukraine said it shot down 70 of 72 attack drones and 35 of 55 missiles fired by Moscow’s military over the weekend, as more of the country’s energy infrastructure was damaged.

The White House last week authorized Ukraine to use some US-supplied weapons to hit targets in Russia’s border areas, but Zelenskiy said his forces should be able to launch long-range missiles at airfields from which Russia is “constantly and completely calmly firing” ”. , knowing that Ukraine cannot strike back.”