UK issued blunt new threat by Russsia and warned to stop meddling in Ukraine

Russia’s ambassador to the UK has issued a stark warning to Britain in the wake of the support shown to Ukraine. Andrei Kelin suggested the military aid provided by Britain could escalate the ongoing war to levels not yet seen.

The Russian envoy said his country doesn’t want an escalation of the conflict and can “make peace tomorrow”.

However, how long the fighting in Ukraine will last “depends on the efforts in escalation of war that is being undertaken by Nato countries, especially by the UK”.

Speaking with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg, Mr Kelin added: “Sooner or later, of course, this escalation may get a new dimension which we do not need and we do not want. We can make peace tomorrow.”

Mr Kelin also warned against underestimating Russia’s power, claiming – despite the destruction and loss of lives caused by the invasion of Ukraine – his country “hasn’t just started yet to act very seriously”.

As Ukraine is expected to launch its counter-offensive in a bid to regain the territories invaded by the Kremlin last year, the ambassador denied reports Moscow’s troops are struggling on the ground and said Russia is “16 times bigger than Ukraine” and has “enormous” resources.

These remarks seemingly clash with the high number of Russian casualties and losses reported in Ukraine and the attacks against the Kremlin launched by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group.

The Wagner chief recently signalled his once close bond with the Russian President may be under strain, as he said he believes there are chances Moscow may lose the war in Ukraine and blamed defence minister Sergei Shoigu and chief of the defence staff Valery Gerasimov for the conflict crisis.

He also claimed Russia could be facing a revolution similar to the Bolshevik revolt that ended the reign of the Tzars in 1917.

Previously, Mr Prigozhin complained about a lack of ammunition received from the Kremlin while his volunteer and ex-convict soldiers were fighting in the besieged eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.

Some 10,000 Wagner members are believed to have died while fighting in the contested area.

The US Government also suggested Russia is experiencing heavy losses in Ukraine, saying more than 20,000 Russian soldiers have been killed and more than 80,000 were injured in the past five months alone.

Mr Kelin’s interview came as Britain delivered its Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine earlier this month as part of its latest package of military aid.

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An analysis suggested there has been a fourfold increase in war-related fires in Russian-occupied territories since May 11 – which appears to coincide with the moment Ukrainian troops started using the UK-delivered long-range missiles.

Ukraine has been rumoured for weeks to be preparing to launch its counter-offensive as dry and warm weather is taking hold of the country.

In a recent interview, Ukrainian senior security official Oleksiy Danilov said the assault would begin when commanders calculated “we can have the best result at that point of the war”.

The BBC interview with Ambassador Kelin will be released in full on Sunday at 9am during the Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme on BBC One.

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