Dutch F-16 fighter jets which the Netherlands is giving to Ukraine can be used to attack targets in Russia, foreign minister Hanke Bruins Slot has confirmed.

Nor will their use limited to the border area near Kharkiv, the minister told news agency ANP. The Netherlands will ultimately supply 24 F-16s to Ukraine and the first are due to arrive in the autumn.

“The principle which we, as the Netherlands, stick to is that, if it is a question of self-defence, and if in line with humanitarian rules of law, weapons from the Netherlands can be used in Russian territory,” she told RTL.

Bruins Slot was speaking in Prague on the edges of an informal Nato summit to discuss the war in Ukraine.

Politico reported on Thursday that the Biden administration had “quietly” given Ukraine permission to strike inside Russia — near the area of Kharkiv — using US-provided weapons, a move which was confirmed by the White House on Friday.

Germany on Friday also gave the green light to Ukraine to use weaponry it has supplied inside Russia.

“Ukraine must be able to do everything necessary to defend itself,” Bruins Slot  said. “We have been clear about this from the start. The good news is that the US has made an important step toward this. Not every country can, or wants to do this, but I have called again today for more countries to do more than they currently allow.