Volodymyr Zelensky accuses the West of ’emboldening’ Putin as Keir Starmer and Joe Biden fail to reach an agreement to give Ukraine new missiles to fire at Russia

Ukraine’s president yesterday furiously demanded permission to fire British missiles into Russian territory.

As Sir Keir Starmer and Joe Biden held talks at the White House last night, Volodymyr Zelensky criticised the West’s dithering as Russian forces “burn our cities and towns”.

This comes amid fears of a wider conflict, with Moscow warning the UN that giving Kiev the green light to use long-range missiles to attack Russian territory would mean “NATO will be a direct party to hostilities against a nuclear power”.

Tensions between Britain and Russia are at breaking point after the Kremlin expelled British diplomats from Moscow.

An angry Foreign Ministry dismissed allegations that envoys were involved in “espionage and sabotage” as “baseless and ridiculous”.

Mr Zelensky expressed his anger hours before the Prime Minister and the US President sat down in the Oval Office to discuss lifting restrictions on Western arms.

Ukraine is unable to fire British Storm Shadow missiles towards Russia, from where most of the deadly attacks on its territory are launched.

Vladimir Putin warned this week that the West would be at war with Moscow if this changed, and that many of its air bases and logistics centres would be vulnerable to Ukrainian attacks if the restrictions were lifted.

According to US sources, Biden has not yet made a final decision.

Yesterday, in his most outspoken comments on the conflict, Mr Zelensky questioned whether Western politicians really wanted Ukraine to win.

She posted on X: “It’s hard to hear over and over again: ‘We’re working on this’ while Putin keeps burning our cities and towns. He doesn’t need anyone’s approval.”

“Anyone who looks at a map clearly understands why Ukraine needs long-range capabilities. Russian military and logistic facilities are safe because we cannot reach them. We know where they are located. All of this can be destroyed in months. So what is missing to put an end to this? Force? Decision? Or will?”

His comments came after meeting Boris Johnson in kyiv yesterday. The former prime minister said: “It is vital that Ukraine can defend itself properly by stopping the appalling Russian attacks with Iranian glider bombs and missiles.

“It is obvious that they should be able to use the Storm Shadow, the SCALP missile (French) and the ATACMS missile (American) against targets in Russia as quickly as possible. Every day that passes, there are more and more unnecessary and tragic losses of Ukrainian lives.”

Western leaders were urged last night to stand firm in the face of Putin’s threats of retaliation.

Despite the possibility of Moscow attacking Polish military bases, the country’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk suggested Putin’s words were merely threats.

“All the developments taking place in Ukraine and on the Russian-Ukrainian front should be taken very seriously, but I would not attach too much importance to Putin’s latest statements,” he said.

But US sources suggested that while Biden could be persuaded over Storm Shadow, he was reluctant to allow kyiv to fire ATACMS missiles towards Russia, fearing it could spark an escalation in Ukraine and the Middle East.

In another blow to Zelensky and Sir Keir, US security sources suggested no immediate decision would be taken on Storm Shadow.

Western officials are prepared for retaliation from Moscow if the United States and Britain approve the use of long-range missiles.

Airstrikes on Polish military bases – used to store Western military supplies for Ukraine – would represent one of Russia’s most extreme responses.

Since Poland is a NATO member, such a move would trigger the alliance’s Article 5, which would require a military response from all member states. For that reason, Putin is more likely to opt for “lower-threshold” responses that do not trigger a direct conflict.

These could include attacks on British and US undersea cable networks, sabotage missions on bases in Eastern Europe or extending Russia’s support to Houthi rebels in Yemen by helping them disrupt vital commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

The message of retaliation was reiterated yesterday by the Russian ambassador to the United Nations.

Vassily Nebenzia told the 15-member Security Council: “NATO will be a direct party in hostilities against a nuclear power, I think they should not forget about this and think about the consequences.”

Although the Kremlin revoked the accreditations of British diplomats last month, it only announced the move yesterday.

The timing did not seem coincidental, as it coincided with the Prime Minister’s “missile diplomacy” trip to Washington DC.

The British left Russia several weeks ago and have already been replaced.

UK military commentators have urged Western allies to approve Ukraine’s Storm Shadow requests.

Former Navy Commander Tom Sharpe said: ‘Imagine if it was the other way around and mainland Britain was being hit and the US was evading giving us the weapons we needed to defend ourselves?

‘Zelensky is a man of remarkable patience and fortitude.

‘You have to give him what he needs to defend his country.

“We must speak the only language that Putin understands, which is the language of strength.”

Rear Admiral Chris Parry said: ‘The Russians will begin to understand the costs that Putin is prepared to impose on his population.

“It’s not so much fun when you’re on the receiving end of missile attacks like the ones the Ukrainians have endured for almost three years.”

This comes after North Korea yesterday provided the outside world with a rare glimpse of a secret facility built to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons.

In a show of defiance to the West, leader Kim Jong Un called for a rapid expansion of his nuclear program as he walked between long rows of metal centrifuges.