As the publication notes, since the beginning of the government led by Keir Starmer, they have done everything to create the impression that support for Ukraine will remain at the previous level. However, recent statements by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky clearly show that Kyiv is worried about the cautious behavior of British ministers.
In particular, V. Zelensky made it clear that he was disappointed that the British Prime Minister did not give Ukraine permission to use long-range Storm Shadow missiles to strike military targets deep in Russia, journalists say.
“Concern not to provoke a wider conflict between Russia and the West is a constant feature of the desire of many Western leaders to arm Ukraine with the weapons it needs to achieve victory.” This is especially true for Washington, where the desire of Mr. Biden’s administration not to provoke Mr. Putin into new acts of aggression in Europe essentially prevents the West from supporting the cause of Ukraine,” The Telegraph writes.
Journalists claim that declaratively, the United Kingdom is ready to give the armed forces permission to freely use Storm Shadow. But the problem is that their use must be coordinated with the US (since these missiles are a joint British-American creation, Washington will have the final say on whether they can be used against targets in the aggressor country Russia).
“And as long as Mr. Biden’s administration is in power, the authorization of such strikes is unlikely,” The Telegraph believes.
British Prime Minister K. Starmer still avoids directly answering the question of whether Washington is indeed restricting the use of Storm Shadow. However, according to The Telegraph journalists, if London really wanted to give Ukraine the freedom to use Storm Shadow, British government officials would have actively and publicly lobbied Washington on this issue.
August 16 British publication “The Times”, citing a source in the government, wrote that the United States actually blocks the use of Ukrainian missiles “Storm Shadow” for strikes on Russian territory.
According to media reports, Britain sent a request for such a decision to the United States more than a month ago, but received no response. The White House denied this information.
August 19 V. Zelensky stated that if the Western partners lifted all existing restrictions on the use of long-range weapons on Russian territory, Ukraine would not need an attack in the Kursk region.
He also emphasized that Ukrainian forces need missile weapons, because not all targets on Russian territory can be hit by drones.
August 25 The Telegraph reported that the administration of US President Mr. Biden believes that it is not necessary for Ukraine to strike Russian territory with long-range missiles “Storm Shadow”, because this task can be handled by Ukrainian drones.
2024-08-31 08:25:37