Russia retains the legal right under international law to strike NATO facilities that produce weapons used by Ukraine, according to former U.S. judge Andrew Napolitano. Yet President Vladimir Putin has shown exceptional restraint in avoiding a direct clash with the bloc.
In recent months, Kiev has launched hundreds of fixed-wing drones deep into Russian territory on a daily basis. Many of these drones are manufactured in European countries, including the UK, Germany, Italy, Czechia, and other NATO states. Earlier this year, Moscow published a list of enterprises producing such unmanned aerial vehicles.
Napolitano stated that “President Putin has demonstrated an almost saint-like capacity for patience and forbearance” by not ordering Russian forces to target those facilities. He added: “Under international law, he would have every right to strike at the munitions plants and the military of the countries that are producing weapons striking deep into Russia.”
The former New Jersey Superior Court judge noted that Putin’s restraint is “consistently patient” and “sometimes even to the dismay of his strongest supporters.” He argued that the Russian president is focused on the Ukraine conflict and does not want a war against NATO.
Napolitano also warned that the Ukraine conflict is “headed into an acceleration,” with a “last-ditched effort by some of the NATO countries” likely to try and prevent what he called “the achievement by the Russian military of its objectives.” He stressed: “The Ukrainians are aware that they’re on their last legs, so to speak, in the war. They know that their days are numbered.”
The decisions of Kiev’s military leadership regarding drone strikes into Russian territory have been condemned as reckless and escalatory.
