Britain is now “directly involved” in the Ukraine war after its Storm Shadow missiles were used to strike targets inside Russia, according to Moscow’s ambassador.
Speaking to Sky News, Andrei Kelin also warned the West to carefully consider the lower bar Russia has established for using nuclear weapons.
It comes after Western allies green-lit Ukraine‘s use of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia this week, following months of requests.
Russia’s President Putin responded on Thursday by saying Russia had tested a new intermediate-range missile in a strike on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
He warned it could also be used against military facilities of countries that allow Kyiv to use their own missiles.
“We believe that we have the right to use our weapons against military facilities of the countries that allow to use their weapons against our facilities,” Mr Putin said.
“And in case of escalation of aggressive actions, we will respond resolutely in a mirror way.”
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Analysis: How Ukraine will use UK missiles
The Russian ambassador told Sky News’ Mark Austin that Britain allowing Ukraine to use its missiles over the border had dragged the UK into the conflict.
“Absolutely, Britain and UK is now directly involved in this war, because this firing cannot happen without NATO staff, British staff as well,” said Mr Kelin.
He added: “The US administration, support by France and the UK, has made a deliberate decision to make these strikes, which seriously escalates the situation, and it can bring a collision between the nuclear powers.”
Mr Kelin called it “deliberate cheating of us” – claiming he had received multiple assurances the Storm Shadows would only be used inside Ukrainian territory.
What are Storm Shadow cruise missiles?
The air-to-air missile has a strike capability of more than 155 miles (250km) – meaning it would potentially allow Ukraine to hit further into Russian territory.
The missile weighs 1.3 tonnes and is just over 5m long.
It is launched from the air, and in theory can be used from Ukraine’s Soviet-made jets.
UK-owned Storm Shadow missiles are made in Stevenage by MBDA. Each cruise missile costs an estimated £2m.
The Storm Shadow was originally developed as a project between the UK and France in the mid 1990s.
It was used in Iraq in 2003, while France, Italy and the UK used it in Libya in 2011.
The missiles have also been used to bomb Islamic State targets in Syria and Iraq.
Image: A 41 Squadron Tornado GR4, preparing to test fire four Storm Shadow missiles over the Atlantic Ocean in 2014. Pic: Crown copyright
Asked what the difference was between Ukraine using British missiles and Russia using Chinese, Iranian and North Korean equipment and manpower, Mr Kelin pointed to foreign fighters on the Ukrainian side.
“On that subject, I can say easily that we have plenty of mercenaries from different countries that are fighting right now on the side of Ukraine,” he said.
“We just have seen in the Kursk area of the Polish unit, which has a special uniform worn by Polish soldiers. So what’s the matter?”
In response to Mr Kelin’s comments, a Downing Street spokesperson said the government would not be “deterred or distracted by commentary from Vladimir Putin or the Russian ambassador”.
Until this week, Britain said its tanks, anti-tank missiles and other equipment could be used inside Russia, but had kept restrictions on long-range missiles – echoing America’s policy.
Many have dismissed the move as empty sabre rattling, but Russia’s ambassador told Sky News he hoped the change “would be carefully considered by Western experts” as underestimating the risk of escalation is “dangerous”.
Putin threatens Western military facilities
Reports on Thursday suggested Russia may have fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
President Zelenskyy said the weapon used had the speed and altitude of a ICBM.
He added: “Today, our crazy neighbour has once again shown what he really is and how he despises dignity, freedom, and human life in general. He is so afraid that he is already using new missiles.”
An investigation is under way to confirm the type of missile, Mr Zelenskyy added.
A spokesperson for the British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said reports of the missile’s use were “deeply concerning”.
Image: Ukrainian troops fire a 120mm mortar towards Russian positions near Chasiv Yar town, in Donetsk region. Pic: AP
However, in his TV address on Thursday evening, President Putin spoke of his forces using a new intermediate-range missile to hit a missile factory in Dnipro.
American officials also said their initial assessment was that the missile was an intermediate-range weapon.
In contrast, an ICBM can travel further – with a ranger greater than 3,500 miles (5,600km). They are generally used to deliver nuclear warheads but can carry other payloads.
Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.
The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.
The charges relate to four women.
He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.
Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.
He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.
The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.
Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.
The comedian has previously denied the accusations, and said all his sexual relationships were “absolutely always consensual”.
Met Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.
“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”
The last blast furnaces left operating in Britain could see their fate sealed within days, after their Chinese owners took the decision to cut off the crucial supply of ingredients keeping them running.
Jingye, the owner of British Steel in Scunthorpe, has, according to union representatives, cancelled future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running.
The upshot is that they may have to close next month – even sooner than the earliest date suggested for its closure.
The fate of the blast furnaces – the last two domestic sources of virgin steel, made from iron ore rather than recycled – is likely to be determined in a matter of days, with the Department for Business and Trade now actively pondering nationalisation.
The upshot is that even as Britain contends with a trade war across the Atlantic, it is now working against the clock to secure the future of steelmaking at Scunthorpe.
The talks between the government and Jingye broke down last week after the Chinese company, which bought British Steel out of receivership in 2020, rejected a £500m offer of public money to replace the existing furnaces with electric arc furnaces.
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The sum is the same one it offered to Tata Steel, which has shut down the other remaining UK blast furnaces in Port Talbot and is planning to build electric furnaces – which have far lower carbon emissions.
Image: These steel workers could soon be out of work
However, the owners argue that the amount is too little to justify extra investment at Scunthorpe, and said last week they were now consulting on the date of shutting both the blast furnaces and the attached steelworks.
Since British Steel is the main provider of steel rails to Network Rail – as well as other construction steels available from only a few sites in the world – the closure would leave the UK more reliant on imports for critical infrastructure sites.
However, since the site belongs to its Chinese owners, a decision to nationalise the site would involve radical steps government officials are wary of taking.
They also fear leaving taxpayers exposed to a potentially loss-making business for the long run.
The dilemma has been heightened by the sharp turn in geopolitical sentiment following Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
The incipient trade war and threatened cut in American support to Europe have sparked fresh calls for countries to act urgently to secure their own supplies of critical materials, especially those used for defence and infrastructure.
Gareth Stace, head of UK Steel, the industry lobby group, said: “Talks seem to have broken down between government and British Steel.
“My advice to government is: please, Jonathan Reynolds, Business Secretary, get back round that negotiating table, thrash out a deal, and if a deal can’t be found in the next few days, then I fear for the very future of the sector, but also here for Scunthorpe steelworks.”
Prince Andrew’s efforts to make money from his Pitch@Palace project have been branded as a “crude attempt to enrich himself” at the expense of “unsuspecting tech founders”, as new documents may shed more light on what he and his team have been attempting to sell.
Today is the deadline for documents to be released relating to Prince Andrew‘s former senior adviser Dominic Hampshire and his interactions with the alleged Chinese spy Yang Tengbo.
In February, an immigration tribunal heard how the intelligence services had contacted Mr Hampshire about Mr Yang back in 2022. Mr Yang helped set up Pitch@Palace China, a branch of the duke’s scheme to help young entrepreneurs.
Image: The alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo, has links with Prince Andrew
Image: Yang Tengbo. Pic: Pitch@Palace
Judges banned Mr Yang from the UK, saying his association with a senior royal had made Prince Andrew “vulnerable” and posed a threat to national security. Mr Yang challenged that decision at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC).
Since that hearing, media organisations have applied for certain documents relating to the case and Mr Hampshire’s support for Mr Yang to be made public. SIAC agreed to release some information of public interest. It is hoped they may include more details on deals that he was trying to do on behalf of Prince Andrew.
So what do we know about potential deals for Pitch@Palace so far?
In February, Sky News confirmed that palace officials had a meeting last summer with tech funding company StartupBootcamp to discuss a potential tie-up between them and Prince Andrew relating to his Pitch@Palace project.
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The palace wasn’t involved in the fine details of a deal but wanted guarantees to make sure it wouldn’t impact the Royal Family in the future. Sky News understands from one source that the price being discussed for Pitch was around £750,000 – there are, however, reports that a deal may have stalled.
Photos we found on the Chinese Chamber of Commerce website show an event held in Asia between StartupBootcamp and Innovate Global, believed to be an offshoot of Pitch.
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Who is alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo?
Documents, released in relation to the investigations into Mr Tengbo, have also shown how much the duke has always seen Pitch as a way of potentially making money. One document from 21 August 2021 clearly states “the duke needed money at the time, and saw the relationships with China through Pitch as one possible source of funding”.
But Prince Andrew’s apparent intention to use Pitch to make money has led to concerns about whether he is unfairly using the contacts and information he gained when he was a working royal.
Norman Baker, former MP and author of books on royal finances, believes it is “a crude attempt to enrich himself” and goes against what the tech entrepreneurs thought they were signing up for.
He told Sky News: “The data given by these business people was given on the basis it was an official operation and not something for Prince Andrew, and so in my view, Prince Andrew had no right legally or morally to take the data which has been collected, a huge amount of data, and sell it…
“And quite clearly if you’re going to sell it off to StartupBootcamp, that is not what people had in mind. The entrepreneurs who joined Pitch@Palace did not do so to enrich Prince Andrew,” he said.
Rich Wilson was one tech entrepreneur who was approached at the start of Pitch@Palace to sign up, but he stepped away when he spotted a clause in the contract saying they’d be entitled to 2% equity in any funding he secured.
He feels Prince Andrew is continuing to use those he made a show of supporting.
He said: “It makes me feel sick. I think it’s terrible – that he is continuing to exploit unsuspecting tech founders in this way. A lot of them, I’m quite grey and old in the tooth now, I saw it coming, but clearly most didn’t. And a lot of them were quite young.
“It’ll be their first venture and you’re learning on the trot, so to speak. So to take advantage of people in such a major way – that’s an awful, sickening thing to do.”
We approached StartupBootcamp who said they had no comment to make, and the Duke of York’s office did not respond.
With reports that a deal may have stalled, it could be a big setback for the duke – especially with questions still about how he’ll continue to pay for his home on the Windsor estate now that the King no longer gives him financial support.