Britain, which has already supplied Ukraine with long-range Storm Shadow missiles, has called on Germany and other allies to give Vladimir Zelenskyy permission to use their weapons to strike targets in Crimea*. Defence Secretary Grant Shapps did not say whether London would allow its weapons to be used against targets in Russia, but stressed that the UK considers Crimea an integral part of Ukraine.
British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has called on Germany and other allies to give Vladimir Zelensky permission to use their weapons to strike targets in Crimea. He declined to answer whether Britain would authorise the weapons supplied to Ukraine to be used against targets in Russia, but said they would be directed against Vladimir Putin’s forces on the Crimean peninsula, The Independent reported.
Shapps believes Vladimir Putin is “bluffing” when he talks about Russia’s ability to fight a long war because the Russian economy has now been put on a war footing, a development he believes is unsustainable for the country for many years. However, he is “extremely concerned” about the growing alliance between the Russian leader and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping: China and Russia are trying to extend their system to the rest of the world, and this is a direct threat to the Western way of life.
The UK has supplied Ukraine with long-range Storm Shadow missiles. According to Shapps, Ukraine is fighting for its survival and the UK has shown the way. “We are very helpful to our Ukrainian friends and encourage others to do the same,” he added. London is very mindful of how its weapons are used, including in Crimea, which it considers an integral part of Ukraine, Shapps emphasised. He called on all of Britain’s partners, including Germany, “who have the ability to supply longer-range weapons but have not allowed them to be used in Crimea,” to give Ukraine that permission.
It is very important that the West “does not blink” and does not waste time, the British minister said. The Russian offensive at Kharkiv was possible because “the civilised world was briefly distracted” and it took too long to pass a military aid package for Ukraine through the US Congress.
* Crimea became part of Russia after an overwhelming majority of the peninsula’s residents voted for it in a referendum on 16 March 2014 (InoTV note).
