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President Volodymyr Zelensky has again called on Kyiv’s Western allies to lift restrictions on the use of weapons by its armed forces against military targets in Russia after Moscow launched devastating air strikes on Ukraine for the second night.

Zelensky’s appeal and the Russian airstrikes come at a time when Kyiv and Moscow are jockeying for the upper hand ahead of possible negotiations that the warring sides have indicated could take place before the end of the year.

With their bold invasion of the Kursk region, Ukrainian forces have turned the tables. For the first time since World War II, a foreign army has penetrated beyond the Russian border and occupied territory.

But Russian troops continue their steady advance in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, taking advantage of Kyiv’s lack of personnel and weapons, combat errors and thin defensive lines. They are now only 10 km from the key logistical hub of Pokrovsk, threatening Kyiv’s influence over the rest of the region.

Zelensky argues that in order to gain the upper hand and dictate the terms for a just end to Russia’s war, Ukraine must strike deep behind enemy lines, where it can weaken Moscow’s military capabilities.

But the country is heavily dependent on its Western allies for weapons and munitions, especially those that can hit long-range targets, and those partners are reluctant to supply such powerful weapons or to allow Kyiv to use the weapons they have supplied in Russia.

Kyiv has been providing Washington with information in recent weeks about specific targets it plans to attack with US Atacms missiles, as well as British Storm Shadow and French Scalp missiles, a senior Ukrainian official said. The targets include airfields, ammunition depots, fuel depots and command and control centers.

Allowing the attacks, the Ukrainian official said, would mean Ukraine could repel Russian airstrikes in advance and force the enemy to move its troops further away from the border.

The Biden administration argues that using these weapons in Russia would make little strategic difference, a claim Zelenskyj strongly denies.

“This is the optimal tactic for countering terrorism. Each of our partners has the right to do so and would undoubtedly use it for their own protection,” he said on Monday.

“There should be no restrictions on the range of weapons for Ukraine … as long as Russia uses all possible weapons of its own as well as drones (made by Iran) and ballistic missiles from North Korea.”

“The US, the UK, France and other partners have the power to help us stop terrorism. We need decisions.”

He added that Ukraine’s invasion of the Kursk region was Kyiv’s opportunity to make up for its deficit in long-range capabilities.

John Kirby, spokesman for the US National Security Council, told reporters in Washington on Monday that there had been “no changes” in US policy regarding gun restrictions.

“This is not a new request from President Zelensky,” he said. “We will continue the talks with the Ukrainians, but we will keep them confidential.”

The airstrikes that rocked Ukraine for a second day in a row late Monday and Tuesday mainly targeted critical infrastructure. While five cruise missiles and 60 combat drones were shot down, at least one of the 91 missiles and drones destroyed a hotel used by foreign journalists and humanitarian workers in Zelensky’s southern hometown of Kryvyi Rih. At least four people were killed and 16 others wounded in the latest attacks, according to Zelensky.

The attack followed a similar bombing at a hotel in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk on Friday evening, in which a British security adviser working for Reuters was killed.

The Russian attack on Monday was one of the largest during the large-scale invasion. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, more than 200 cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and drones targeted critical infrastructure and residential areas in 15 regions. At least five people were killed and dozens more injured. US President Joe Biden called the attack an “outrageous attack”.

Biden said he had “changed priorities for U.S. air defense exports to go to Ukraine first,” adding: “The United States is also increasing energy equipment supplies… to repair their systems and strengthen the resilience of Ukraine’s energy grid.”

The shelling appeared to be a sign that Russia was intensifying its air strikes on Ukrainian power plants, which began in the spring. Following the latest shelling, rolling power outages were imposed on Monday.

“Each of these attacks brings us back to the task of long-range capabilities – the need to equip our defense forces with enough long-range weapons that can destroy terrorists precisely in the areas of their attacks,” Zelensky said.