Zelensky’s forces fire UK cruise missiles into Russia; US shuts Kyiv embassy, citing airstrike threat

The US shut its embassy in Kyiv on Wednesday morning due to what it called the threat of a significant air attack, a day after Ukraine used US missiles to hit a target inside Russia in what Moscow described as an escalation in the war.

President Joe Biden has approved the provision of anti-personnel land mines to Ukraine, a US official told Reuters, a step that could help slow Russian advances in its east, especially when used along with other munitions from the US.

Ukraine fires UK Storm Shadow cruise missiles into Russia

Ukraine fired a volley of British Storm Shadow cruise missiles into Russia on Wednesday, the latest new Western weapon it has been permitted to use on Russian targets a day after it fired US Atacms missiles.

The strikes were widely reported by Russian war correspondents on Telegram and confirmed by an official on condition of anonymity. A spokesperson for Ukraine’s general staff said he had no such information at present.

Moscow has said the use of Western weapons to strike into Russian territory far from the border would be a major escalation in the conflict. Kyiv says it needs the capability to defend itself by hitting Russian rear bases used to support Moscow’s invasion, which entered its thousandth day this week.

Russian war correspondent accounts on Telegram posted footage they said included the sound of the missiles striking in the Kursk region. At least 14 huge explosions can be heard, most of them preceded by the sharp whistle of what sounds like an incoming missile. The footage, shot in a residential area, showed black smoke rising in the distance.

The pro-Russian Two Majors Telegram channel said Ukraine had fired up to 12 Storm Shadows into the region and carried pictures of pieces of a missile with the name Storm Shadow clearly visible.

A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his office would not comment on reports or operational matters.

Britain had previously allowed Ukraine to use Storm Shadows within Ukrainian territory. The Kyiv government has been pressing Western partners for permission to use such weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia and obtained the all-clear from US President Joe Biden to use the Atacms this week, two months before Biden leaves office.

Biden’s successor, President-elect Donald Trump, has said he will end the war, without saying how. The warring sides have interpreted this as likely to involve a push for peace talks — not known to have been held since the war’s earliest months — and are trying to seize a strong position before negotiations.

The Storm Shadows have a range in excess of 250km and give Ukraine the ability to hit targets far deeper into Russia than before.

The first use of the US Atacms on Tuesday, fired at a Russian arsenal in the Bryansk region, prompted firm words from Moscow, which announced a change to its nuclear doctrine to lower the threshold for the use of atomic weapons. Washington has said it sees no need to adjust its own nuclear posture and accused Moscow of resorting to irresponsible rhetoric.

Military analysts have said the longer-range missiles are unlikely to give Ukraine a decisive edge in the war, but could help it strengthen its position, especially in the battle for a sliver of land inside Russia’s Kursk region it seized in August.

US shuts Kyiv embassy, citing strike threat

The US shut its embassy in Kyiv on Wednesday morning due to what it called the threat of a significant air attack, a day after Ukraine used US missiles to hit a target inside Russia in what Moscow described as an escalation in the war.

Later, after an air raid siren in the early afternoon jangled nerves in the capital, Ukraine’s military spy agency said Russia was trying to sow panic by circulating fake online messages about a massive looming missile and drone attack.

“The enemy, unable to subdue Ukrainians by force, resorts to measures of intimidation and psychological pressure on society. We ask you to be vigilant and steadfast,” it said.

A US government source said the embassy closure was “related to ongoing threats of air attacks”. The Italian and Greek embassies said they too had closed their doors. The French embassy remained open, but urged its citizens to be cautious.

The US State Department later said it expected the Kyiv embassy to resume normal operations on Thursday.

Biden approves anti-personnel mines for Ukraine

Biden has approved the provision of anti-personnel land mines to Ukraine, a US official told Reuters, a step that could help slow Russian advances in its east, especially when used along with other munitions from the US.

The US expects Ukraine to use the mines in its territory, though it has committed not to use them in areas populated with its own civilians, the official said. The Washington Post first reported the development.

The US has provided Ukraine with anti-tank mines throughout its war with Russia, but the addition of anti-personnel mines was aimed at blunting the advance of Russian ground troops, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The US mines differed from Russia’s as they were “non-persistent” and became inert after a preset period, said the official. They require a battery to detonate, and will not explode once the battery runs out.

Putin’s spy chief warns West against direct military conflict with Russia

President Vladimir Putin’s spy chief warned the West on Wednesday that it risked disastrous consequences if the US and its European allies stoked a direct military confrontation with Russia over Ukraine.

Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), said Russia would punish any Nato states that helped Ukraine strike deep into Russia with long-range Western weapons.

“Attempts by individual Nato allies to participate in providing for possible long-range strikes with Western weapons deep into Russian territory will not go unpunished,” Naryshkin told the magazine National Defence.

Naryshkin, who heads the main successor organisation to the Soviet-era KGB’s First Main Directorate, said Western elites were starting to become more aware of “the seriousness of Russia’s intentions”.

He said the West should understand “the need for greater restraint in their actions so as not to get involved in a direct military conflict with our country, which could lead to disastrous consequences for them”. DM