Russia threatens British military targets over Ukraine’s use of British weapons

Russia issued a warning on Thursday that it could hit British military targets in and around Ukraine after it said Ukrainian forces had used weapons supplied by the United Kingdom.

“Russia will respond to attacks against our territory committed using British weapons against British military facilities in our country and beyond its borders,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, as quoted by RIA Novosti, a Russian state-controlled news agency, and international media.

“It’s clear that when transferring to the Ukrainians so-called assembly functions, London and Paris are nervously trying to shift the blame away from themselves in the implementation of the strikes deep into our country’s territory,” Zakharova added.

According to her, Great Britain and its allies like France would have to bear the responsibility. Russia previously warned the UK it was increasingly acting as a belligerent by supplying Ukraine with production designs for components of its long-range missiles, which “add fuel to the fire”, after a key Russian weapons plant attacked Ukraine’s Black Sea fleet.

Great Britain has been a strong supporter of Kyiv since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February last year. Such a response could lead to more friction between Russia and a NATO member state.