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Boris Johnson has urged Sir Keir Starmer to break the deadlock over allowing Ukraine to fire long-range missiles at Russia, warning that daily delays are costing lives.
After visiting war victims in kyiv, the former prime minister expressed disappointment that talks between Sir Kiir and US President Joe Biden in Washington had failed to authorise the use of Storm Shadow missiles against Vladimir Putin’s forces.
Mr Johnson said: “It is heartbreaking to visit wounded veterans in recovery centres – as I did in kyiv this weekend – where Ukrainian heroes are being treated for injuries they have sustained in recent months and to think that some of these casualties could have been avoided if we had allowed the storm to spread sooner.
“There is no conceivable reason to delay. Vladimir Putin is the only person who fears escalation, and every day that passes is a lost opportunity to save lives and bring about a just conclusion to this war.”
Volodymyr Zelensky shakes hands with Boris Johnson during a meeting in kyiv on September 13.
Storm Shadow missiles are seen attached to the hardpoints of the Eurofighter Typhoon
A Ukrainian armored military vehicle drives past a burned vehicle near the Russian-Ukrainian border, Sumy region, Ukraine, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024.
Moscow says its forces are resisting the advance. Photo: August 15 Vladimir Putin
Putin has told Western nations that unleashing Storm Shadow would represent NATO’s “direct involvement” in the Ukraine war.
So far, the US has allowed kyiv to use US-supplied weapons only in a limited area within Russia’s border with Ukraine.
After the White House meeting, Sir Kiir sidestepped questions about the missiles, saying only: “We had a long and productive discussion on a range of issues, including Ukraine, rather than any ‘particular action or strategy’.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described Johnson as one of his greatest friends as he renewed his call for the West to allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russia and allow its forces to use Western weapons to attack air bases and launch sites further afield. He attacked his country’s power grid.
In a message shared on X, Zelensky said of Johnson: “I am grateful for his attention to Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion and his support in providing it with much-needed international assistance.
“Ukrainians always remember those who supported them.”
Ukrainian soldiers operate a tank on a road near the border with Russia in Ukraine’s Sumy region on August 14, 2024.
File image. Putin has told Western nations that unleashing Storm Shadow would represent NATO’s “direct involvement” in the Ukraine war.
Zelensky said the country needed to “boost our air defense and long-range capabilities to protect our people.”
Defense analyst Justin Crump said Putin’s threats showed he was testing both the new Labor government and the outgoing Biden administration.
He added: ‘Finally, Russia is already supplying arms to adversaries of the UK and is already engaged in active actions such as subversion, espionage, sabotage and information/cyber operations against the interests of NATO members.
“Everything may be speeding up, but taking on NATO is not something Russia can afford to do if it is only fighting Ukraine.”
