A top Russian general and 500 North Korean soldiers are said to have been killed by British Storm Shadow missiles in a devastating attack.
The attack launched by Ukraine on November 20 destroyed Lieutenant General Valery Solodchuk and also resulted in the loss of 18 Putin officers, with another 18 injured, it is claimed.
Earlier reports suggested that a general of Kim Jong Un was also injured in the attack while commanding forces supporting Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The attack carried out by Ukraine was the first time British Storm Shadow missiles had been used to blast targets deep inside Russia.
It is understood that the point-missiles had hit a Putin command post and military facility, with the scale of Russian losses now said to have been enormous.
Russian authorities have not yet confirmed any losses that would be serious for either Russia or North Korea, and the reports have yet to be independently verified.
The Storm Shadows targeted an underground military facility in Maryino on a Tsarist estate in the Kursk region on November 20.
New footage shows a Storm Shadow missile involved in the attack as it flew towards its target, it is claimed.
The attack launched by Ukraine on November 20 wiped out Russia’s top general Lt. Gen. Valery Solodchuk
This is when missiles, believed to be British Storm Shadow missiles, struck Russia
The attack carried out by Ukraine was the first time British Storm Shadow missiles had been used to blast targets deep inside Russia. One image after the attack showed a written indentation on a piece of metal that read: ‘Storm Shadow’
Images shared on social media showed fragments of a British Storm Shadow missile in Marino, Kursk on November 20.
If true, the losses could explain Putin’s furious response: He fired a new Oreshnik hypersonic missile at Dnipro, and his public boasts that he had a new superweapon that was unstoppable by the West.
Moscow also threatened that Ukraine’s use of NATO-supplied missiles meant Putin could legitimately retaliate with nuclear missiles.
The Russian officers reportedly killed are from Putin’s southern and eastern military districts.
The attack carried out by Ukraine was the first time British Storm Shadow missiles had been used to blast targets deep inside Russia.
The US-based Global Defense Corp reported that 500 North Korean soldiers were killed in addition to Russian officers, but there was no independent confirmation.
More than 10,000 North Koreans are believed to have been transferred from Siberia to the war zone after their leader Kim Jong Un was ordered to serve Putin.
They are currently fighting for Putin or about to be deployed.
Kim’s decision to inject North Korean soldiers into Russia to help in Putin’s bloody war has raised concerns among Kiev’s allies, who worry the move could spark what is already Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II worsen.
The US-based Global Defense Corp reported that in addition to Russian officers, 500 North Korean soldiers were also killed, but there was no independent confirmation (file photo)
South Koreans look at Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin during a recent meeting
Britain’s Storm Shadow missiles are capable of evading air defenses, making them a nightmare offensive weapon for their enemy
Last week’s Storm Shadow missile attack reportedly hit the sanatorium of Russia’s Presidential Affairs Directorate in Maryino, a former Tsarist estate.
Britain’s Storm Shadow missiles are capable of evading air defenses, making them a nightmare offensive weapon for their enemy.
The £800,000 missiles use GPS technology to precisely destroy targets and can fly through the air at a speed of 900km/h.
Storm Shadow missiles have long been used by Ukraine on its own territory, but Kiev now appears to have been given permission to use the weapons to strike inside Russia.
Storm Shadow – called Scalp by the French – is a weapon equipped with a navigation system that, once launched, descends to a low altitude to avoid detection before zeroing in on its target using an infrared seeker.
On the final approach, the missile climbs to a higher altitude to maximize its chances of hitting the target.
On impact, it penetrates the target before a delayed fuse detonates the main warhead.
British Storm Shadow missiles have a range of up to 300 kilometers, meaning Ukraine could now have the ability to strike targets in Russia.
Britain first confirmed it would supply Ukraine with Storm Shadow missiles for use on Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine in May last year.
At the time, Defense Secretary Ben Wallace had touted that the weapons would give Ukraine the “best chance” of defending itself.
It comes after outgoing US President Joe Biden last week authorized war-torn Ukraine to use long-range missiles to strike deep into Russia.
The decision was a major US policy shift and comes as Biden is set to leave office and newly elected President Donald Trump has pledged to limit US support to Ukraine and end the war as quickly as possible.