Ukraine fires UK storm shadow missiles at Russia for first time

Ukraine’s armed forces fired British cruise missiles at military targets inside Russia for the first time, a Western official familiar with the matter said, as the 1,000-day conflict enters a new phase.

The UK approved the use of Storm Shadow missiles in response to Russia deploying North Korean troops in its war against Ukraine, a move the British government considered to be an escalation, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. 

The issue had dominated the Group of 20 leaders’ summit in Brazil this week after US President Joe Biden gave the go-ahead for Ukraine to fire long-range ATACMS missiles at Russian targets. But Starmer didn’t publicly back the move, despite long being seen as an advocate, leading to questions about whether his government would allow the use of British-made Storm Shadows.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has long called for Western governments to bolster military support, including allowing the use of long-range missiles to hit targets in Russia that are crucial to Vladimir Putin’s war effort.

Storm Shadow debris was found in Russia’s Kursk region to the north of Ukraine and two missiles were intercepted over Yeysk, a Black Sea port in the southern Krasnodar region, according to the Telegram channel Rybar, which has connections to the army and more than 1.3 million subscribers. The information couldn’t be independently verified.

US Treasuries pared declines after the latest missile launch was announced.

It comes a day after the Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine had used western-supplied ATACMS for the first time to strike a military facility inside Russia.