‘Our missiles are ready to blow up Trafalgar Square,’ Putin ally says

Vladimir Putin ‘s raging TV propagandists have called for Britain to be obliterated with nuclear weapons , amid reports that the UK is set to give Ukraine permission to use its Storm Shadow missiles inside Russian territory. Kremlin mouthpieces are competing with each other to outline the most shocking and devastating war plans imaginable, with numerous commentators describing how far Russia could go in a nuclear attack. One proposed dropping Russia’s Satan-2 missile, widely described as ‘the world’s deadliest weapon’, on Trafalgar Square, while another urged Putin to use the new Poseidon high-speed underwater drone and sink the UK under a ‘radioactive tidal wave’. It comes as US intelligence has led to the closure of several Western embassies in Kyiv amid an expected massive Russian attack on the Ukrainian capital following the use of an American ATACMS missile to strike Putin’s territory. Kyiv’s military intelligence responded by saying that Moscow is conducting a ‘psychological attack against Ukraine’, warning of fake messages circulating and increased missile threats that it said were part of Russia’s ‘psychological operation.’

Russian state media analyst Vladimir Kornilov today hit out at Britain newspaper headlines saying Storm Shadows ‘are ready for use in Russia’ following the Ukrainian deployment of American missiles. ‘Look, well, I have to say that, well, our Sarmat [Satan-2] missiles are also ready, always ready for use in Trafalgar Square,’ threatened Kornilov. Hypersonic Sarmat – known in the West as Satan-2 – is a 208-ton intercontinental silo-launched 15,880mph nuclear weapon, the size of a 14-story tower block, which Putin claims is unstoppable by the West. The Mach 25 rockets each carry ten nuclear warheads of 750 kilotons and have a 7,500 mile range. But Putin propagandist-in-chief Vladimir Solovyov said there was a better way to sink Britain, with the new Poseidon drone, a weapon unmatched by Western technology. ‘I want to see the Poseidon [high-speed underwater nuclear drone] – it’s so beautiful,’ he told state TV viewers across Russia’s 11 time zones. ‘This is the beauty of this [tidal] wave, the glow of the radiation, and then [Britain] is washed away like this. These stables of British imperialism are washed away – amazing.’

Like Satan-2, it is far from clear that Poseidon with an ‘unlimited range’ is properly tested. Nevertheless, Putin sees it as part of his new nuclear arsenal and classifies it a ‘super weapon’. It is designed to carry strategic nuclear warheads of up to 100 megatons and could unleash catastrophic destruction. It could also be deployed with lesser firepower as a tactical weapon. Some reports say its underwater speed is up to 115mph, with a capability to operate at depths below 3,000 ft. It is due to be ready soon but details of tests remain scant. Meanwhile, Putin’s propaganda warriors have pushed out footage seen in July which listed seven specific targets in England and Scotland, while also stressing ‘all European capitals are at risk’.

Hardline MP and TV presenter Yevgeny Popov warned: ‘Special attention to Britain, our traditional enemy, as a significant part of the [Russian] Northern Fleet will work against [the UK]. ‘Under attack Washington has put not only London, but also Manchester, Birmingham, the largest naval base Devonport, the Clyde in Scotland, where the King stores his Trident nuclear missiles, Portsmouth as well as Chatham Dockyard in the county of Kent. ‘This is Britain at its most vulnerable. ‘Basically, all it would take is three missiles and this civilization would collapse.’ He threatened: ‘It is not difficult to guess the geography of the response if White House [plans] become a reality. ‘All European capitals are at risk [from] our missiles in Kaliningrad – Berlin, Warsaw, all the Baltic republics, Paris, Bucharest, Prague…. ‘Of course, also the American bases in Germany….Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Patch Barracks [Stuttgart], Spangdahlem, [and] Ramstein.’

He accused the ‘Western bloc’ of misreading the impact on Russia of the US move, highlighted at the recent NATO summit in the US. ‘No reaction, no reflection and no attempt to analyze the implications,’ he said. ‘A quick study of the missiles’ specifications is enough to realize that the US is throwing Europe into the crucible of a world war with guaranteed mutual destruction.’ Putin yesterday signed off on an updated version of the Kremlin’s nuclear doctrine that broadens the scope for Moscow to turn to its fearsome atomic arsenal on the same day that US-made missiles rained down on Russian soil. The new document, first announced in September, allows Putin’s strategic forces to deploy their devastating weapons if Russia or Belarus is threatened by a non-nuclear nation supported by a nuclear power . Threats that could warrant a nuclear response from Russia’s leadership include an attack with conventional missiles, drones or other aircraft, according to the updated document.

They come as news emerged that the US is set to provide Ukraine’s army with shipments of landmines to slow the advance of Russian ground troops as Putin’s forces wear down Ukrainian defensive lines in Donetsk. Officials in Washington confirmed late last night that American anti-personnel mines would be sent to Ukraine on the proviso the punishing weapons are only used to repel Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory. Ukraine’s strike on an ammunition depot in Russia’s Bryansk region yesterday with US-supplied ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System) meets these criteria, with Moscow saying that it marks a ‘new phase of the Western war’. ‘This is, of course, a signal that they want to escalate,’ Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said, while foreign intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin said attempts by NATO countries to facilitate Ukrainian missile strikes deep inside Russia ‘would not go unpunished’. But Ukraine’s foreign ministry issued a defiant statement in spite of the Kremlin’s nuclear saber-rattling, declaring that ‘Ukraine will never submit to the occupiers and the Russian military will be punished for violating international law’.

‘We need peace through strength, not appeasement,’ the ministry added, as Volodymyr Zelensky called on Kyiv ‘s allies to ‘force’ Moscow into a ‘just peace’ and vowed his troops would ‘never surrender.’ The US provision of ATACMS to Ukraine for strikes in Russia along with shipments of anti-personnel mines suggests the Biden administration is scrambling to leave Ukraine on the best possible footing ahead of Donald Trump ‘s return to the White House . In Eastern Ukraine, Russia’s forces are steadily grinding towards the logistics hub of Pokrovsk having taken large swathes of territory in the Donetsk region in recent months. Putin’s army took 185 square miles of Ukrainian territory in October, a record since the first weeks of the conflict in March 2022, according to an analysis of data provided by the real-time conflict tracker from the Institute for the Study of War. There are mounting concerns that Trump could push for a hasty ceasefire requiring Ukraine to cede significant portions of its territory – a prospect that leaves both sides fighting to capture as much land as possible to strengthen their position ahead of negotiations.

Sir Keir Starmer yesterday offered his biggest hint yet that No 10 would authorize Ukraine to fire UK Storm Shadow missiles into Russia on the same day that US ATACMS struck Russian targets. Speaking at the G20 summit in Brazil, the British Prime Minister said: ‘I’ve been doubling down in my clear message that we need to ensure Ukraine has what is needed for as long as needed to win this war against Putin. ‘I am not going to go into operational details. You would not expect me to. The only winner in that would be Putin and it would undermine Ukraine.’ He added that the rhetoric currently coming from Russia was ‘irresponsible’ and would not deter the UK’s response. Zelensky’s plea to use UK Storm Shadow missiles on targets in Russia has so far been rebuffed by Downing Street for fears of escalating the conflict. A senior defense source said the UK prefers to ‘confirm by use’, for example, when a missile strikes.

But it is expected the restrictions will soon be relaxed after the US permitted Ukraine to strike Russia with ATACMS. The White House’s previous reluctance to authorize strikes on Russian soil with Western weaponry was thought to be the main obstacle preventing the UK from greenlighting the use of Storm Shadow missiles, given that the projectiles contain US-made components and often rely on targeting data provided by Washington. Following the ATACMS strike in Bryansk early yesterday, Moscow’s emergency ministry announced it had begun mass-producing mobile bomb shelters that can protect against shockwaves and radiation from a nuclear blast. The new ‘KUB-M’ shelters will offer protection for 54 people for up to two days against natural and man-made hazards, Moscow’s emergency ministry has said. ‘The mobile shelter is a multifunctional structure that provides protection for people from various threats, including natural disasters and man-made accidents,’ its research institute explained, calling it ‘an important step towards improving the safety of citizens’. They can easily be transported on a truck and connected to water supplies, and can also be deployed in Russia’s vast northern permafrost, it added.

In anticipation of Ukraine receiving permission to use ATACMS, Russia’s air force is said to have redeployed many of its fighter jets and strategic bomber aircraft away from the airbases in range of the missiles to sites further east. But there are still more than 200 military facilities that could be battered by the US-manufactured munitions from positions along the 800-mile-long frontline. Among the first likely targets for Ukrainian strikes could be the Kuzminka Military Base, a critical staging area for Putin’s forces between the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and the Ukrainian border which acts as a hub for vehicle storage, troop assembly and operational planning. Russia’s 381st artillery regiment is also located close to the Kuzminka base along with several logistics centers. Meanwhile, in Kursk, Kyiv’s troops could seek to target the headquarters of Russia’s 448th Missile Brigade or regional assembly points used to gather troops preparing to push back the Ukrainian incursion in the region. Targeting these sites could cripple Russian logistics, command, and combat support, significantly reducing Moscow’s offensive capabilities in occupied Ukrainian territory​ and harming efforts to retake territory in Kursk. However, the overall supply of ATACMS missiles to Ukraine is short, so US officials and analysts have questioned whether allowing Ukraine to use the weapons systems is really worth it given the potential consequences that could ensue.

Jennifer Kavanagh, director of military analysis at the Defense Priorities think tank, was critical of the Biden administration’s decision to approve the use of ATACMS on targets in Russia. ‘Expanding Ukraine’s ability to launch offensive strikes with Western weapons inside Russia will not alter the trajectory of the war or help Kyiv gain an advantage against a better equipped and more resilient adversary. ‘Any escalation could reverberate on Ukraine itself. With the Biden administration on its way out and the incoming Trump administration indicating an intention to end the war, Putin has little incentive to act with restraint in his retaliation toward Kyiv.’ But proponents of the policy say that even a few strikes deeper inside Russia would force its military to change deployments and expend more of its resources. George Barros, leader of the Russia team and GEOINT team at ISW that compiled the list of targets, sought to highlight the way in which ATACMS could impact Putin’s troops and campaigned for the Biden administration to allow strikes beyond Kursk as a result.

‘Reminder that there are hundreds of valid, legal, legitimate, and operationally consequential military targets in range of Ukrainian ATACMS,’ he wrote. ‘The Biden Administration’s shift to allow ATACMS use in Russia is a good thing.’ Matthew Savill, the director of military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute, said of Ukraine’s ATACMS attacks: ‘Many of the best targets – helicopters and glide-bomb armed aircraft attacking Ukrainian cities and troops in the north or in Kursk have largely moved to airbases outside the range of ATACMS. ‘This still leaves plenty of opportunities to strike military headquarters and ammunition or supply locations supporting Russian and North Korean troops, but this would be a reduced impact from when the Ukrainians first requested these weapons.’

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