Russia threatens to launch “massive” new missiles capable of striking anywhere in Europe after dozens of US- and UK-made rockets were fired at Kursk.
In a dramatic development on Wednesday, up to 12 Storm Shadow rockets were launched at targets in the southern Russian province where kyiv’s troops have seized territory.
The Mail understands that the attacks, which came after Ukraine fired US-supplied ATACMS missiles on Tuesday, were personally approved by Sir Keir Starmer.
In retaliation, Russia is preparing to launch its deadly RS-26 or Frontier missiles from a base in Astrakhan next to the Caspian Sea, local media reported.
The weapons weigh up to 50 tons and have a range of 5,600 kilometers, although they have never been used in combat.
Instead, kyiv has been hit by smaller, slower Iskander missiles since the war began in February 2022.
The Kremlin already warned this week that it would respond harshly to sanctioning the use of American and British-made missiles on Russian territory.
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with New People’s party leader Alexey Nechaev in Moscow on November 19.
ATACMS – Army Tactical Missile – fired from an M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System
Storm Shadow missiles hit a building with an underground “control room” where Russian and North Korean military officials are believed to be hiding.
According to Moskovsky Komsomolets, a Moscow-based newspaper, a military expert had spoken too openly of retaliation.
Timur Syrlanov, a Russian military analyst, said Ukraine should “tremble” over the use of the RS-26 rocket.
The newspaper reported him as saying: “In this situation, we will not use nuclear weapons, but I think the neo-Nazis and their Western allies will appreciate in the coming days the blow that will be dealt to Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and, possibly, targets in the kyiv itself.
‘Let them tremble, let them be afraid and wait for the landing anywhere. Furthermore, the enemy perfectly understands that our weapons can hit any target throughout Ukraine.”
Putin yesterday provocatively approved changes to the country’s laws on nuclear weapons to facilitate their deployment against Ukraine.
And his Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov chillingly warned that the attacks were a clear sign that kyiv “wanted to escalate” and that Russia would “react accordingly.”
The terrifying saber rattling was confirmed by the Russian president’s close ally, Dmitry Medvedev. In a post on X, the vice president of Russia’s security council said it meant “World War III.”
It came after kyiv launched six ‘ATACM’ missiles from an undisclosed location over the border into Russian territory on Tuesday.
RS-26 or Frontier missiles weigh up to 50 tons and have a range of 3,600 miles, although they have never been used in combat
Images shared on social media show what appear to be fragments of a British Storm Shadow missile in Marino, Kursk.
British Storm Shadow missiles are capable of dodging air defenses, making them a nightmarish strike weapon for your enemy.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a news conference on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Nov. 19.
One image shows an indentation written on a piece of metal that reads: ‘Storm Shadow.’
The attacks caused a loud explosion at a warehouse in Karachev, which is believed to store ammunition supplied by North Korea, about 120 miles from the border with Ukraine.
However, as tensions rise in the war between Russia and Ukraine, the Defense Secretary announced that the UK military would be hit with cuts worth £500 million.
John Healy said the Labor Government would scrap six major programs in the Armed Forces, including the Army’s main drone fleet and two amphibious assault ships – HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark.
The plans have been criticized by former Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, who argued they would send a message of weakness to the UK’s adversaries.
Writing in The Telegraph, he said: “To deter our enemies, they must know that we intend to have no holes in our capabilities, or at least we will soon improve them.”
‘Telling the world that we are reducing our capabilities when our enemies are doing the opposite is pure madness.
‘No one is fooled by Labour’s tired and misleading excuse that “we have to wait for a defense review”… another one.’
Russian military bloggers recovered fragments of the Storm Shadow missiles on Wednesday afternoon and posted unverified photos on social media.
A fierce explosion lit up the night sky about 125 kilometers from the nearest Ukrainian border at an ammunition depot in Karachev, Russia’s Bryansk region, on Tuesday.
Vladimir Putin’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (pictured) chillingly warned that Moscow would “react accordingly” and described the attack as a sign that kyiv “wanted to escalate”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attends a joint news conference with Denmark’s Prime Minister at the presidential palace in kyiv on November 19.
The pieces were apparently stamped with the words Storm Shadow.
Multiple explosions could be heard in videos recorded near the village of Maryino, preceded by high-pitched whistles apparently from incoming missiles. Footage also showed smoke billowing from buildings.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that Ukraine had attacked an underground command and control facility 50 miles inside Russia.
The navigation data and satellite intelligence that facilitated the airstrikes were understood to have been provided by the United States.
The attacks, which have not been confirmed by the British Government, follow the use of the UK’s Storm Shadows to eliminate Russian military infrastructure in Crimea.
The significant difference is that, while the United Kingdom considers occupied Crimea to be sovereign territory of Ukraine, Britain recognizes that Kursk belongs to Russia.
It is understood that the last time British weapons were used on sovereign Russian territory was during clashes between an Allied force and the Bolsheviks in the Archangel Arctic region in 1918-19. Before that, it was during the Crimean War in the 1850s.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Healey refused to confirm the reports or divulge any operational details.
He told MPs: ‘We have seen in recent weeks a significant change in (Russian) action and rhetoric on Ukraine. “We, as a nation and as a government, are redoubling our support for Ukraine and intend to do more.”