Kremlin warns ‘a collision between the nuclear powers’ is imminent now the West is firing missiles into Russia in newest menace of WW3

Russia has warned that British support for Ukraine could ‘lead to a collision between nuclear powers’ in a grave threat as President Vladimir Putin vowed to launch more hypersonic missiles at targets in Ukraine.

Andrey Kelin, Russia’s ambassador to the UK, cited American support for Ukraine to use Western missiles against targets in Russia, backed by Britain and France, in his warning that ‘this seriously escalates the situation’ and ‘can lead to a collision between the nuclear powers’.

The Kremlin suggested this week it was ‘entitled’ to fire upon ‘the military targets of those countries that allow their weapons to be used against our facilities’ in a thinly-veiled threat to the West, after the US gave its support for Kyiv using ATACMS missiles against Russian and North Korean forces in Russia.

After striking the Ukrainian city of Dnipro with an experimental hypersonic missile early on Thursday, Putin ordered the mass production of the ‘unstoppable’ Oreshnik, believed to be able to reach Britain in under 20 minutes.

‘There is no countermeasure to such a missile, no means of intercepting it, in the world today. And I will emphasise once again that we will continue testing this newest system. It is necessary to establish serial production,’ Putin said. 

Amid rising fears of escalation, Ambassador Kelin told Sky News that Britain was now ‘directly involved’ in the war in Ukraine after its Storm Shadow missiles were reportedly used to strike targets inside Russia.

British long-range missiles were reported to have been greenlit for use and then used after the US gave approval for Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles.

‘Absolutely, Britain and UK is now directly involved in this war, because this firing cannot happen without NATO staff, British staff as well,’ Mr Kelin told the outlet. 

‘The US administration, support[ed] by France and the UK, has made a deliberate decision to make these strikes, which seriously escalates the situation, and it can bring a collision between the nuclear powers.’ 

The Pentagon, likewise, has told Ukraine that North Korean targets reinforcing Russian lines within Russia are ‘fair target’.

The Kremlin, however, did claim it was making ‘maximum effort’ to avoid a nuclear conflict after it updated its nuclear doctrine this week.

The new policy allows Putin’s strategic forces to deploy their devastating weapons if Russia or Belarus is threatened by a non-nuclear nation supported by a nuclear power.

Threats that could warrant a nuclear response from Russia’s leadership include an attack with conventional missiles, drones or other aircraft, according to the updated document.

‘We have stressed in the context of our doctrine that Russia is taking a responsible position to make maximum effort not to allow such a conflict,’ Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov added Thursday.

Putin has also said that Moscow will carry out more tests of the hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile in ‘combat conditions,’ a day after firing one on Ukraine.

‘We will continue these tests, including in combat conditions, depending on the situation and character of the security threats posted to Russia,’ he said in a televised meeting with military chiefs.

Putin said that while it isn’t an intercontinental missile, it’s so powerful that the use of several of them fitted with conventional warheads in one attack could be as devastating as a strike with strategic – or nuclear – weapons. 

Russia fired the new-generation missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro early Thursday in a major escalation of the weaponry being deployed in the nearly three-year conflict.

The Kremlin boss also ordered the missile, which flies at speeds of Mach 10 – 10 times the speed of sound – to be put into serial production. Russia is developing similar advanced systems, he added.

‘We need to begin serial production. The decision… has in effect been taken,’ Putin said, praising the ‘particular strength of this weapon and its power.

‘The weapon system that was tested yesterday [November 21] is another faithful guarantee of Russia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,’ he added. 

Putin claimed no other countries in the world had such missile technology. 

While he conceded other states would soon develop them, he said: ‘That will be tomorrow, after a year or two. But we have this system now. That’s important.’

His choreographed meeting with the defence minister and those in charge of developing the missile came at the end of a week that has seen the Ukraine conflict escalate rapidly.

Putin said the firing of the Oreshnik missile was a direct response to Kyiv’s forces using US- and UK-supplied missiles on Russian territory for the first time.

In an address to the nation on Thursday, Putin said Russia reserved the right to fire missiles at military facilities in countries whose weapons are being used by Ukraine – specifically the United States and Britain.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is asking its Western partners for updated air defence systems after Russia fired an ultra-fast ballistic missile at the city of Dnipro this week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday.

‘Ukraine’s defence minister is already holding meetings with our partners on new air defence systems – exactly the kind of systems that can protect lives from new risks,’ Zelensky said in an evening video address published on social media.

Ukraine’s parliament canceled a session as security was tightened following Thursday’s Russian strike on the military facility in Dnipro. 

NATO and Ukraine will hold emergency talks Tuesday after Russia attacked Dnipro with the experimental, hypersonic ballistic missile that escalated the nearly 33-month-old war.

The conflict is ‘entering a decisive phase,’ Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Friday, and ‘taking on very dramatic dimensions.’

Gen. Sergei Karakayev, head of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces, said the Oreshnik could reach targets across Europe and be fitted with nuclear or conventional warheads, echoing Putin’s claim that even with conventional warheads, ‘the massive use of the weapon would be comparable in effect to the use of nuclear weapons.’

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov kept up Russia’s bellicose tone on Friday, blaming ‘the reckless decisions and actions of Western countries’ in supplying weapons to Ukraine to strike Russia.

‘The Russian side has clearly demonstrated its capabilities, and the contours of further retaliatory actions in the event that our concerns were not taken into account have also been quite clearly outlined,’ he said.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, widely seen as having the warmest relations with the Kremlin in the European Union, echoed Moscow’s talking points, suggesting the use of U.S.-supplied weapons in Ukraine likely requires direct American involvement.

‘These are rockets that are fired and then guided to a target via an electronic system, which requires the world’s most advanced technology and satellite communications capability,’ Orbán said on state radio. ‘There is a strong assumption – that these missiles cannot be guided without the assistance of American personnel.’

Orbán cautioned against underestimating Russia’s responses, emphasizing that the country’s recent modifications to its nuclear deployment doctrine should not be dismissed as a ‘bluff.’ ‘It’s not a trick- there will be consequences,’ he said.