Tensions between Moscow and London are reaching alarming levels, with Russia threatening Britain with attacks on its military bases in retaliation for the weapons supplied to Ukraine and used in raids against refineries and other Russian infrastructure. The response could target “any military targets and British equipment in and outside Ukraine,” the Foreign Office warned. But in the evening Donald Trump said he had had “good discussions” with Vladimir Putin and that “he will not attack NATO territories”. And EU sources in Brussels have also assured that there is “no immediate risk of an attack on European countries and NATO members”. While «hybrid and not-so-hybrid actions – it is explained – will continue to occur».
The Kremlin’s denial of plans against NATO
The warning from the spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, came almost simultaneously with the statements from the Kremlin, which, on the contrary, judged the alarms spread in the Western media about Putin’s intention to test NATO’s determination with a limited attack against a country of the alliance in the next few years to be without any foundation.
Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow
In particular, it was the Wall Street Journalaccording to which Tuesday’s visit to Moscow by the director of the CIA, John Ratcliffe, was intended to warn Moscow against undertaking such an initiative. That this was the reason for Ratcliffe’s mission was already denied on Wednesday by the US president himself, who had spoken of a “semi-routine” visit. Along the same lines are the statements of the head of the Russian foreign secret service (SVR), Serghei Naryshkin, who said he had a normal “working meeting” with the head of the CIA in which there was “nothing unusual”. “In the practice of secret service activities, meetings between managers or meetings in online format are part of our work,” commented Naryshkin. As for Russia’s alleged intentions to attack NATO, they are just “bogeymen” circulated by certain media, which “have nothing to do with reality”, said Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman.
Relations with London are at their lowest
However, the Kremlin’s reassurances did not prevent the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman from issuing a harsh warning to London, with which relations are worsening day by day. Only Wednesday on Financial Times he had written that the United Kingdom is accelerating the review of its national defense plans and is preparing to launch a public information campaign on how to deal with an emergency against the backdrop of increasingly concrete “threats” from Russia. Among other things, British families would be invited to stock up on food and water in view of possible hostile actions by foreign states.
Reports had also emerged in recent weeks that London would supply Ukraine with drones for attacks deep into Russian territory, including the Nyan, produced by the arms giant Bae Systems. Finally, this week, Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced that the United Kingdom will hand over to Kiev the Storm Shadow cruise missile projects, already supplied in the past by London and used by Ukrainian forces.
Zakharova’s warning
“We invite all citizens of the United Kingdom to reflect on the inevitable and catastrophic consequences of the hostile steps of their authorities,” Zakharova said, calling on the British government to “immediately renounce its hostile and aggressive attitude, which can only prolong the agony of the neo-Nazi regime in Kiev and create risks of an escalation of the conflict to a completely new level.” However, the Russian spokeswoman concluded, “we have repeatedly warned that the response to Ukrainian attacks with the use of British weapons on the territory of Russia could be represented by any British military targets and equipment in Ukraine and outside of it.”
Officer killed in St. Petersburg
An officer, meanwhile, was killed in St. Petersburg in the explosion of his car, in what appears to be a new attack against a Russian soldier after several others, partly claimed by Kiev’s secret services. According to the St. Petersburg newspaper Fontankathis would be a lieutenant colonel who served in the Aerospace Forces. Officially, the Investigative Committee limited itself to saying that it had opened an investigation into a criminal act concerning “the burning of a car”, the one in which the officer died and his wife was injured.