British Prime Minister responds to Putin's threats
Keir Starmer (Getty Images)
Kyiv has the right to self-defense. Putin started the war against Ukraine and can end it at any moment, according to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
He made this statement on his way to Washington for a meeting with US President Joe Biden to justify the West's decision to allow Ukraine to strike Russian territory using Storm Shadow missiles, partially manufactured in the UK.
Earlier, Putin had warned that any use of British long-range missiles on Russian territory would lead to a NATO war with his country.
Responding to Putin's threats, Starmer told reporters, "Russia started this conflict. Russia illegally invaded Ukraine. Russia can end this conflict straight away. Ukraine has the right to self-defence."
He added that the UK had provided "training and capability" (referring to weapons) to help Ukraine repel the Russian invasion and said he was meeting with the US President partly because "there are obviously further discussions to be had about the nature of that capability."
Earlier, The Guardian reported that the US and the UK, together with other allies, had agreed to allow Ukraine to strike military targets on Russian territory with Storm Shadow missiles, which have a range of at least 300 km, a long-standing demand from Kyiv.
According to Bloomberg, the US and UK governments are still discussing permitting Ukraine to carry out long-range strikes on Russian territory.
