A high-ranking Russian official has issued a stark threat to the United Kingdom, publishing a map that singles out 23 British defence and industrial sites as potential targets for missile strikes, dramatically escalating geopolitical tensions.
The Provocation and the Map
The alarming move was made by Dmitry Rogozin, a Russian senator, war veteran, and former deputy prime minister who once led the country's space agency. His action was a direct response to comments made in October by former UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.
Wallace had argued that the West should help Ukraine make Crimea "uninhabitable and unviable from a Russian point of view" through long-range capabilities, stating the aim should be to "strangle Crimea." Rogozin seized on these remarks, posting a map on social media that he implied highlighted Russian targets within the UK.
"Deadly Dangerous": Rogozin's Chilling Warning
Accompanying the map, Rogozin declared that the UK could become "deadly dangerous". He sarcastically thanked Western officials for revealing their "true intentions," adding it was useful for those in Russia who still believed peace with "imperialist aggressors" was possible.
In a pointed aside, he advised Russian oligarchs: "do not send your children to study in England! It is deadly dangerous." The map itself was sourced from the UK government's own "Defence Industrial Strategy 2025" policy paper, pinpointing sites across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Kremlin Media Amplifies the Threat
The threat was swiftly amplified on Russian state television by prominent propagandist Vladimir Solovyov, known for his Kremlin-scripted rants. He endorsed Rogozin's post as a "reminder of targets in Britain that could be destroyed first," and threatened to unleash Russia's Poseidon nuclear underwater drone against the UK.
Solovyov launched a personal attack on Ben Wallace, calling him "a piece of s*** who lost his job" and a "nobody." He chillingly added that if such a strike occurred, the perishing British should utter Wallace's name, as he "brought trouble to the island."
This incident occurred just a day after another ominous threat aired on Russian state TV. Historian Dr Andrey Sidorov suggested a clandestine Russian special forces operation could target the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery in the Thames Estuary.
The sunken US Liberty ship from World War II still contains approximately 1,400 tonnes of live explosives. Sidorov claimed detonating it would flood coastal villages and ports, smirking as he told viewers, "Just don't accuse me of terrorism." This was framed as potential revenge for alleged British involvement in Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries.
Together, these coordinated threats from Russian officials and state media represent a significant intensification of hostile rhetoric towards the UK, directly linking the war in Ukraine to potential retaliation on British soil and raising grave concerns about regional security.
