After UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron stated that Ukraine had the right to use long-range missiles it received from the UK to target deep within Russian territory, Moscow issued a stern warning that such actions could provoke retaliation against British interests.
Reports from RT say that UK's Ambassador to Russia, Nigel Casey, was summoned to the Foreign Ministry to listen to the Russian side. The Russian authorities told him that in case of Ukrainian attacks on Russian soil, including those by means of British-supplied missiles, the Russian authorities might resort to retaliatory measures against British assets in Ukraine or elsewhere.
The Foreign Ministry published a statement after the meeting to make the position clear: the ambassador was told about all the consequences, not just the British military installations or equipment in Ukraine, inside its borders, and even beyond.
The Foreign Ministry interpreted Cameron's comments as an admission by the UK of its participation in the conflict, considering this a step toward escalation and a signal that London had become more involved in military operations compatible with Kiev.
In its turn, the UK ambassador was asked to weigh the serious consequences of such a type of actions and to disavow in the strongest manner possible the belligerent statements made by Cameron.
Meanwhile, the French Ambassador Pierre Levy was also summoned to the Foreign Ministry. However, Moscow has not disclosed the details of the meeting.
The tension increased as Russia manifested a strong dissatisfaction with the suggestion by the French President Emmanuel Macron to station NATO troops in Ukraine to counter possible Russian advances.
Earlier in the day, the Russian Defense Ministry announced military exercises aimed at the testing of the application of tactical nuclear weapons. The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, issued an order for these drills on the background of "provocative statements and threats" by Western leaders.
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