UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has agreed to provide Ukraine with blueprints to build long-range Storm Shadow missiles during his first visit to Kyiv since becoming premier. The missiles are capable of hitting targets around 150 miles (241km) into Russia.
Coalition of the willing
Despite doomsday threats from Russia, Burnham is set to chair the "coalition of the willing" and hand over the blueprints so Ukraine can build its own missiles. While not as far as Ukraine's deep strike drone capability, it is a significant step in showing the willingness of international partners to share weapons technology.
The visit marks 35 years of Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union. Similarly, Ukraine hopes for Patriot interceptor missiles, which it desperately needs more of to defend against Russian ballistic attacks.
Storm Shadow capabilities
Storm Shadow missiles are highly effective long-range weapons designed for deep precision strikes. They use advanced technology jointly developed by France and the UK, with the French-produced equivalent being known as the Scalp missile.
By allowing the declassification of vital UK components, Ukraine and France aim to establish local assembly lines to produce these weapons domestically.
Impact and Russian backlash
Ukraine's Air Force has already successfully used these cruise missiles to attack critical Russian infrastructure. Strikes have reportedly targeted a Bryansk chemical plant and hit a major oil refinery in Novoshakhtinsk that supplies Russian troops.
Burnham's decision to share this highly classified technology highlights unwavering UK support for Ukraine. The supply of these advanced weapons has provoked severe backlash from Moscow. Russian state media figures have aggressively urged Vladimir Putin to retaliate against Britain by launching a devastating nuclear tsunami threat using a Poseidon torpedo.
