The U.S. has secretly revised its ban on Ukraine using U.S.-provided weapons to conduct strikes within Russian territory, following Putin's expansion of the front to the North-Eastern Ukrainian Oblast Kharkiv. Two anonymous officials close to the situation told Politico that the decision was made to allow Ukraine to respond with “flexibility” to Russian aggression. However, President Biden hasn’t given Kyiv carte blanche, restricting the use of U.S. weapons in Russian territory to military targets near the Kharkiv Oblast. U.S. officials have previously denied any change in policy, despite pressure from lawmakers in both parties and abroad. Kharkiv, the capital of the region, is the second-largest city in Ukraine. Ukraine’s slipping position on the battlefield certainly swayed Biden’s decision, according to Politico. “The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use U.S. weapons for counter-fire purposes in Kharkiv so Ukraine can hit back at Russian forces hitting them or preparing to hit them,” said one official who spoke to Politico.