Ukraine using British weapons for terror attacks – Moscow
A senior Russian diplomat said that London supports Kiev in a bid to strengthen its role in NATO
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry official Sergei Belyaev said that Ukrainian forces are actively using weapons supplied by Britain to carry out terrorist attacks against Russian regions.
Belyaev, who heads the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Second European Department, said in a statement that London remains one of the largest arms donors to Kiev, having provided £7.1 billion ($8.9 billion) in aid since the Russian-Ukrainian conflict began in February 2022. Interview With TASS news agency published on Saturday.
He added: “The weapons provided by the United Kingdom are actively used by the Ukrainian army in terrorist attacks on civilian infrastructure and the civilian population in Donbass, as well as other Russian regions.” He said.
According to the diplomat, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcement last month of a military aid package worth 500 million pounds ($617 million) for Ukraine was an attempt by Britain to gain a more prominent role in NATO and among European countries.
“The British acted in a similar way when they began delivering Storm Shadow cruise missiles and Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine.” He explained that Ukraine has become one of the first countries to provide Kiev with these types of devices.
Belyaev noted that Russian diplomats have repeatedly warned their British counterparts that support for the government of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is unacceptable. “Harmful” And “It leads to further escalation and casualties among the civilian population.”
“London abandons the path of confrontation” Including penalties “It is a necessary condition for restoring bilateral political, trade and economic relations.” He said with Moscow.
Tense relations between Russia and Britain deteriorated further last week after Foreign Secretary David Cameron said Ukraine had the capacity to… “right” Use UK-supplied weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia, if you decide to do so.
The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the British Ambassador to Moscow, Nigel Casey, following Cameron’s statements. “Casey was warned that the response to Ukrainian strikes using British weapons on Russian territory could be any British military facilities and equipment on the territory of Ukraine and beyond.” The ministry said in a statement after the meeting.
Earlier this week, the UK announced it was expelling the Russian military attaché, who was described as a military attaché “Undeclared military intelligence officer” Some Russian-owned properties in the country were stripped of their diplomatic status. Moscow pledged “Appropriate response.
