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by WILL FOLKS
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The Russian Federation issued an explicit warning to the leaders of Great Britain this week – threatening attacks against British military targets if Ukraine is permitted to use long-range British cruise missiles in its ongoing war with Russia.
Maria Zakharova, the spokeswoman for the federation’s foreign ministry, made the bombastic remarks at a news briefing in Moscow on Thursday (August 27, 2026). The comments came one day after the head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), John Ratcliffe, made a secret trip to the Russian capital.
Conflicting narratives have emerged as to the purpose of Ratcliffe’s visit. Some reports have speculated he was warning Russia against any moves against NATO nations in the Baltic, while other reports suggest he was delivering a blunt assessment of what the west perceives to be Russia’s deteriorating military situation in Ukraine.
The Russian minister’s remarks also came one day after Ukraine was accused of firing British Storm Shadow missiles at a shopping center in Donetsk – a Russian-controlled city in eastern Ukraine. Earlier this week, British prime minister Andy Burnham traveled to Ukraine – pledging to provide the eastern European nation with classified technical information necessary to manufacture its own Storm Shadow missiles. In exchange, Ukraine is providing Britain with detailed war data from its ongoing conflict with Russia.
To say Russia took notice of the escalation would be an understatement.
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“We have repeatedly warned that any British military installations and equipment in Ukraine and beyond its borders could be targeted in response to Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory carried out using British weapons,” Zakharova said, urging “all residents of the United Kingdom to think about the inevitable, catastrophic consequences of the hostile steps taken by their own authorities.”
According to Zakharova, Britain’s new deal with Ukraine runs “the risk of the conflict escalating to an entirely new level.” Britain and France – which previously granted Ukraine access to its long-range missile technology – were “playing with fire,” Zakharova added.
London appeared completely unfazed by Moscow’s bravado.
“Britain stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and we are committed to providing the equipment Ukraine needs to defend itself against Putin’s illegal invasion,” an unnamed defense ministry official told The (U.K.) Guardian. “Russia should be in no doubt about the resolve of this government to stand against Russian aggression, in Ukraine and against the UK and our allies.”
The United States is also deeply involved in the Ukraine proxy war – which it helped instigate a decade ago via a CIA-led coup. The late U.S. senator Lindsey Graham, one of our nation’s most aggressive warmongers, has been a driving force in our costly engagement – and was pushing for a significant expansion of sanctions against Russia at the time of his sudden death last month.
Our media outlet has written extensively about alternative theories behind Graham’s untimely demise – including suspicion that he may have been targeted for assassination during his final trip to Ukraine.
Our bottom line on all of these foreign entanglements? It’s simple: a nation $40 trillion in debt has no business subsidizing anyone’s defense but its own. Which means Eastern Europe, the South China Sea and the Middle East have become unsustainable spheres of influence.
BANNER VIA: GETTY IMAGES
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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