Pentagon Declines to Comment On Whether Ukraine Has Already Used US Arms to Strike Inside Russia

Ukrainian forces have been given US "permission" to bomb Russia with the Pentagon explaining that this directive had only just come into effect.

Washington green-lit Ukraine using US weapons against targets in Russian territories adjacent to the Kharkov region last week but maintained the ban on deeper cross-border strikes with ATACMS tactical missiles and other long-range weaponry. 

Nonetheless, The New York Times, citing Ukrainian officials, has reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces struck deep into Russia in the Belgorod region using HIMARS systems just a few days after receiving US "permission." 

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said that attempts to strike Russia with US weapons were already being made. President Vladimir Putin warned NATO allies last week that they should realize "what they are playing with" when they allow Ukraine to use long-range Western weapons to strike deep into Russia.