Bloomberg: UK sends Ukraine more Storm Shadow missiles to strike in Russia

Storm Shadow production at the MBDA missile factory in Stevenage, UK.
Photo: AFP

The UK government recently resupplied Ukraine with more Storm Shadow cruise missiles to enable Kyiv to continue its campaign of long-range strikes inside Russia, people familiar with the matter said, Bloomberg reports.

The delivery of an unspecified number of missiles was made to ensure Ukraine is stocked ahead of the winter months, during which Britain is concerned the Kremlin will step up attacks on Ukrainian civilians, according to the people, who spoke anonymously about matters that haven’t been made public.

As Russia increasingly struggles under the weight of sanctions, the UK and its allies are trying to show Vladimir Putin that Western support for Ukraine will outlast the ability of the Russian economy to sustain its war effort.

The British move comes as US President Donald Trump again ruled out sending Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine. Storm Shadows have helped Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s administration target vulnerabilities in Russia. In October, Ukraine’s military said it had hit a Russian chemical plant with the UK-made long-range weapon.

“A massive combined missile and air strike was carried out, including the use of air-launched Storm Shadow missiles, which successfully penetrated the Russian air defense system,” the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine posted on social media. That was the first confirmed use of Storm Shadow missiles inside Russia since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.

Storm Shadows are precision-guided, air-launched missiles with a range of more than 250 kilometers (155 miles). They fly close to the terrain at high speeds, using a combination of so-called inertial navigation with Global Positioning System and terrain-reference navigation, according to a fact sheet on the website of their manufacturer MBDA.

The UK government hasn’t said how many Storm Shadow missiles it has given Ukraine during the war, and doesn’t regularly announce transfers.

…It seems that by continuing provocations allowing British missiles to attack Russia, London asking for  retaliatory strikes. Is that true?

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