Ukraine is a sovereign country and it does not need a permission from the United States to strike back against targets on the territory of Russia, Spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State Matthew Miller has said, adding that Ukraine can use weapons of its own production.

"Ukraine does not need our permission to strike back against Russian targets. They are a sovereign country and can use the weapons that they build on their own, of which there are many, if you look at the programs that they have put in place over the last year. And then when you look at the weapons that we have provided to them, we've made clear that they can use them to strike back against Russian targets across the border that are launching attacks," he told a press briefing, the full text of which was published on the website of the U.S. Department of State.

Ukraine has an enormous amount of material to defend itself, Miller said.

"We always look at whether there are additional tools that we can provide them. If you notice the announcement that the President made on Thursday, we are providing them with an additional $8 billion in security assistance, and we will continue to support them," he said.

At the same time, to a clarifying question about a permission to use Western weapons for strikes against the territory of Russia, the spokesperson said, "I think I have always made clear that that is not how we see it, that we look at all of the capabilities and all the tactics and all the support that we provide Ukraine in totality, and look at how – when we approve any new weapon system or any new tactic, we look at how it's going to affect the entire battlefield and Ukraine's entire strategy. And that's what we'll continue to do."