US and British leaders meet as Ukraine pushes to ease weapons restrictions

President Joe Biden is meeting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House on Friday to discuss support for Ukraine and Israel and to highlight the decades-old “special relationship” between the two nations.
The meeting comes as the Western allies consider changing policy to allow Ukraine to use long-range weapons provided by the United States and Britain to strike into Russian territory. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy were in Kyiv earlier this week, where President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made the case to deploy such weapons, including American ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) and British Storm Shadow missiles to target Russia.
“Let’s count on some strong decisions at least. For us it’s very important for today,” Zelenskyy told reporters in Kyiv on Wednesday, in response to whether the transatlantic allies would greenlight deeper strikes into Russia.
While in the Ukrainian capital, Blinken noted that Washington has adapted and “will adjust as necessary” its support for Ukraine, to meet Moscow’s changing strategy in the battlefield. He used similar language in May, just before the Biden administration loosened its restrictions to allow American weapons to be used on cross-border attacks but not on targets deep inside Russia.
Earlier this week, Biden signaled that he is open to loosening restrictions further, telling a reporter that his administration was “working that out now.”
However, Biden’s Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Ukraine has already been able to strike inside Russia with its own internally produced systems, including drones. Speaking in a meeting of allied defense ministers last week, Austin said he did not believe providing Kyiv with long-range attack capability would be “decisive” in the war.
Moscow has warned that such a move would escalate the conflict beyond Ukraine. On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said allowing long-range strikes “would mean that NATO countries, the United States, and European countries are at war with Russia. … If this is so, then, bearing in mind the change in the very essence of this conflict, we will make appropriate decisions based on the threats that will be created for us.”
No British weapons for Israel
The leaders are also expected to discuss cease-fire prospects in the 11-month war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
London is usually aligned with Washington on its support for Israel. Last week, though, Starmer’s government announced it will suspend arms export licenses to Israel for use in military operations in Gaza, following a review of Israel’s compliance with international humanitarian law.
The Biden administration has resisted pressure from progressive Democrats and Muslim and Arab Americans to enact an arms embargo on Israel.
About 30 licenses for weapons used in the current conflict in Gaza were suspended from a total of approximately 350 U.K. licenses to Israel. The suspension followed months of protests at British weapons factories.
The move is less drastic compared to other countries including Belgium, Italy, Canada, Spain and the Netherlands that have announced a total ban on arms exports to Israel in recent months out of fear the weapons are being used on Palestinian civilians. U.K. defense exports to Israel are also relatively small, about $24 million in 2023.
Additionally, Biden and Starmer are expected to discuss the threat of Iran. In recent weeks, the White House has emphasized Iran’s role in both the conflict in the Middle East and in Europe. The White House said that Iran is not only Hamas’ main sponsor in its war against Israel, but also is providing short-range ballistic weapons to Russia to use against Ukraine.
‘Special relationship’
Friday’s meeting will be the second in-person engagement with Biden since Starmer came into office in July. The pair will reaffirm the decades-long “special relationship” between the two countries.
“After a chaotic few years, during which the United Kingdom had five prime ministers in six years and was largely absent from effective diplomacy while it wrestled with the consequences of the 2016 Brexit referendum, the new Labour government is aiming to reset relations with neighbors and allies,” said Peter Westmacott, former British ambassador to the U.S., who now is an ambassadorial fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center.
“No doubt the Democrats will also be interested in any tactical tips Starmer may have for how to win a general election,” he added.
There has been heightened concern in Europe about the future of transatlantic relations should former President Donald Trump win against Vice President Kamala Harris in the November election. Many are worried that under Trump — who has expressed skepticism about NATO — U.S. support for Ukraine would falter.
Biden and Starmer also are expected to discuss other world concerns ahead of the annual meeting of global leaders at the United Nations General Assembly in New York later this month.