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Britain and US are ‘playing with fire’ by supplying Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets: Russian foreign minister accuses the West of ‘an unacceptable escalation’ over its military support for Kyiv
- Sergei Lavrov accused the West of ‘an unacceptable escalation’ of the war
Western nations are ‘playing with fire’ by agreeing to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, Russia’s foreign minister has said.
Sergei Lavrov accused the West of ‘an unacceptable escalation’ of the war over its continued military support of Ukraine.
Earlier this month, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte agreed to build an ‘international coalition’ to help procure F-16 fighter jets for Ukraine.
And US President Joe Biden approved plans to allow allies to train Ukrainian forces on how to operate US-made F-16 fighter jets – and eventually to provide the aircraft themselves.
‘It’s playing with fire, without a doubt,’ Lavrov said of Western nations agreeing to provide Ukraine with the fourth-generation fighter jets. He denounced it as an attempt ‘to weaken Russia’ by ‘Washington, London and their satellites in the EU’.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West of ‘an unacceptable escalation’ of the war over its continued military support of Ukraine
He added that Britain and the United States are ‘playing with fire’ by agreeing to supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets (pictured)
F-16s have been at the top of Ukraine’s weapons wishlist since it was handed main battle tanks from the likes of the US, United Kingdom and Germany.
Kyiv, having already bolstered its air defences with a host of Western-supplied anti-aircraft systems, now believes the jets could be vital in the war and essential to the country’s long-term security.
Lavrov’s warning came as Russia unleashed its largest drone bombing blitz of the war against Kyiv.
The overnight attack, which carried on into yesterday morning, involved 54 weapon-carrying drones – timed to coincide with celebrations marking 1,541 years since Kyiv was founded.
But Ukraine said artillery gunners stationed around the Ukrainian capital shot most of the missiles from the sky, in the latest setback for Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Lavrov’s warning was echoed yesterday by Russia’s ambassador to Britain, Andrei Kelin, who warned the UK not to commit further resources to Ukraine or the conflict could escalate.
A Russian drone is shot down by Ukrainian forces in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 28
A firefighter puts out a fire following a massive Russian drone attack on May 28
Speaking to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, he claimed: ‘Sooner or later this escalation may get a new dimension which we do not need and do not want.’
Earlier this month, UK Defence Minister Ben Wallace confirmed that Britain is sending Storm Shadow long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine in a further blow for Vladimir Putin’s war effort.
The missiles, which cost about £2.2million, will allow Ukraine to hit Russian troops and logistics hubs deep behind the front line. It was the first known shipment of longer-range weaponry that Kyiv has long sought from its allies.
The UK has been providing Ukraine with short-range missiles, Challenger tanks and training 15,000 Ukrainian troops on British soil.
During the Kyiv bombardment, two deaths – including a 41-year-old man – and three injuries were reported, said mayor Vitali Klitschko.
Ukraine’s air force said that ‘a record’ of 54 drones were launched from the regions of Briansk and Krasnodar in Russia, adding that 52 were destroyed.
As the drone war rages, Russia has blamed Ukraine – and its Western backers – for increasing artillery and drone attacks on its territory, accusations Kyiv has mostly denied.
Most drones target Russian regions bordering Ukraine but they have sometimes reached hundreds of kilometres inside Russia, including a thwarted attack on the Kremlin itself.
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