British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has confirmed that the United Kingdom will provide Ukraine with classified blueprints for the production of long-range cruise missiles. During his first official visit to Kyiv, Burnham announced that the government is allowing the defense firm MBDA to declassify technical information regarding components for the Scalp missile, which is the French equivalent of the British Storm Shadow. The move is intended to allow Ukraine to establish its own domestic assembly lines for these weapons.
The decision comes as Ukraine continues to seek more robust long-range capabilities to strike military targets. While the UK and France have previously supplied finished Storm Shadow and Scalp missiles from their own stocks, this new agreement focuses on transferring the intellectual property and technical knowledge required for local manufacturing. Burnham characterized the move as part of a broader effort to maintain pressure on Russia and squeeze its ability to finance the ongoing conflict.
Responding to the announcement, the Kremlin issued sharp warnings regarding the escalation of British involvement. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the Russian military is already gathering data to identify and destroy any future missile production sites within Ukraine. Peskov accused the UK of methodically adding fuel to the fire and suggested that the transfer of such technology prevents any progress toward a peaceful resolution. Former Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Fedorov further cautioned that British factories could face "semi-military" retaliation from unknown sources.
Despite these threats, Burnham remained resolute during his meetings with President Volodymyr Zelensky and other international allies. He emphasized that the UK would not back down and urged members of the "coalition of the willing" to continue digging into their own military stocks to support Kyiv. The Prime Minister also chaired a meeting of the 34-nation partnership, where leaders reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening Ukrainian air defenses as an urgent priority.
In addition to the missile blueprints, the UK and Ukraine announced a new military technology partnership. This agreement grants British experts access to the Avengers AI Labs database, which contains battlefield data captured by sensors and cameras. Officials from Downing Street noted that this data will be utilized to train artificial intelligence models designed to address national security challenges faced by both nations. Burnham concluded his visit by recognizing Ukraine's role as a protector of European security and pledging continued British support.
