Move follows US president Joe Biden’s agreement to supply similar American long range Atacms weapon

Britain is expected to supply Storm Shadow missiles for use by Ukraine on targets inside Russia, now that the US president, Joe Biden, has agreed to do the same for the similar American long-range Atacms weapon.

Keir Starmer, the prime minister, said at the G20 summit that the UK recognised it needed to “double down” on its support for Ukraine, while diplomatic sources briefed they expected other European countries to follow the US lead.

...

Russia, however, accused the west of escalation and said that Biden risked adding “fuel to the fire” in Ukraine, and while Donald Trump remained silent on the issue, his son Don Jr accused the military industrial complex of wanting to get “world war three going”.

Storm Shadow missiles have a range of about 250km (155 miles), similar to the US Atacms, and have in the past been given to Kyiv by the UK and France to strike targets inside Ukraine’s internationally recognised borders.

But the US retained an effective veto on their use because it supplies a guidance system and repeated lobbying by the UK had failed to shift the US position, which has only begun to soften after the election victory of Donald Trump earlier this month.

...

Ukraine had also become increasingly exasperated with Britain on the issue of long-range missiles, complaining earlier this month that not only had there been no progress on their use inside Russia but that the UK had stopped supplying them at all.

  • aaaaaaadjsf [he/him, comrade/them]
    ·
    13 days ago

    Storm Shadow missiles have a range of about 250km (155 miles), similar to the US Atacms, and have in the past been given to Kyiv by the UK and France to strike targets inside Ukraine’s internationally recognised borders.

    This depends. The Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles Ukraine has, have had their range restricted to approximately this so far to comply with missile export controls and treaties. The domestic UK and French variants have an unrestricted range of around 560km/350mi, and there have been talks of sending Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles without restrictions to Ukraine. However, such a range could put Moscow in range of Ukrainian strikes, so I don't think the US/UK or France will give Ukraine unrestricted Storm Shadow/SCALP missiles, it would be seen as too large of an escalation/an unacceptable escalation. But crazier things have happened in this war so far...

    • HumanPenguin@feddit.uk
      ·
      13 days ago

      The way, it seems like Both Starmer and Biden are talking,

      The current goal seem to be to convince Russia the war is too costly before Trump gets in.

      If so. Honestly, I don't think Moscow is considered untouchable by them any more.

      I think they may have decided, allowing a nation to think its capital is safe while it is attacking another nation's capital. It is just encouragement for that first nation to continue the war.

      But like your comment. It's just an opinion/guess based on the rhetoric I am seeing.

      I'll add if Russia is serious about MAD no longer applying. As they claim with their non nuke attack responding in a nuke response claims.

      Then everything I have ever seen about the US and NATO's attitude. Once MAD is off the table, so is the concept of a world peace. NATO has depended on the no first strike agreement from its birth. Without that, the US is less likely to be rational when it comes to nukes.