Russia warns Britain is ‘playing with fire’ over its support of Ukraine

Moscow threatens retaliation after Andy Burnham says UK will help Ukraine start producing long-range missiles

Russia has said it could retaliate against the UK for its support of Kyiv by striking military targets inside and outside Ukraine , amid reports that the director of the CIA warned the Kremlin against attacking Nato during a secretive visit this week.

Andy Burnham, Britain’s prime minister, said on Monday the UK would allow Kyiv access to classified technology to start ⁠its own production of Storm Shadow ​long-range ​cruise missiles. Maria ⁠Zakharova, Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, said on Thursday Britain and France were “playing ⁠with ​fire”.

The Wall Street Journal reported that a visit by John Ratcliffe, the CIA chief, to Moscow on Tuesday had followed a US intelligence assessment that Russia could be planning to test Nato with a limited assault on an allied country. This could range from a cyber-attack to a small-scale incursion, probably in a Baltic nation.

Russia has made frequent threats against Ukraine’s western allies during the war, including thinly veiled nuclear threats and others apparently aimed at diplomatic missions in Kyiv.

Asked ‌to comment ‌on the reports of Ratcliffe’s visit – and despite Thursday morning’s threat against UK targets – Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, said: “A lot of this kind of scare-story material is being published right now. Of course, it has ‌nothing to do with reality and nothing to do ​with the intentions of the Russian Federation.”

Russia is believed to be contemplating a further escalation of its war with Ukraine after months of escalating Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s oil refining infrastructure and other sites, which are imposing an increasing economic toll.

The Kremlin has adopted ever more bellicose rhetoric, much of it aimed at a domestic audience, as the war in Ukraine has been brought to its doorstep.

In the space of a few days Russia has invoked the threat of its nuclear arsenal against Japan over its territorial claim to the disputed Kuril Islands. It has described relations with the US as a “crisis” and at a historic low point.

Ratcliffe’s reported warning mirrored one made by his predecessor, William Burns, in 2021 before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine – which Moscow also denied it was contemplating.

Concerns over Moscow’s intentions have been escalating amid a rise in incidents of Russian hybrid warfare attributed to Moscow across Europe , from cyber-attacks and drones to arson, at facilities associated with supporting Ukraine’s war efforts.

Russia and the US have tried to play down Ratcliffe’s meeting with his Russian counterparts: Donald Trump on Wednesday described the visit as “semi routine”. However, the unusual nature of the encounter has caused intense speculation in the west and Russia.

Nato countries neighbouring Russia have moved quickly to increase their military readiness. Poland this week announced it had taken delivery of its first shipment of South Korean Black Panther main battle tanks, which will be deployed near the border with Russia’s Kaliningrad region.

Cezary Tomczyk, Poland’s deputy defence minister, said this month Warsaw was preparing for the possibility of a full-scale conflict.

Tomczyk told Super Express media : “We are preparing for war, hoping it never happens.”