Burnham to visit Ukraine with promise of boost for Kyiv’s long-range missiles

PM will use independence day trip to announce sharing of classified information about Storm Shadow components

Britain will boost Ukraine’s capacity to make its own long-range missiles, Andy Burnham will announce on Monday, as he travels to Kyiv for the country’s independence day on his first foreign visit as prime minister.

Burnham will arrive in the Ukrainian capital on Monday morning at a crucial time in the war, with Kyiv braced for another wave of Russian missile attacks and the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, facing his most direct domestic challenge.

The UK prime minister will use the trip to announce that the UK government will allow the European defence company MBDA to declassify information about UK-made components of the Anglo-French Storm Shadow/Scalp missiles to help Ukraine build its own version.

Full Story:

The Guardian

11 minutes ago, Macro said:

PM will use independence day trip to announce sharing of classified information about Storm Shadow components

So in effect he has just declared war with Russia...don't worry he'll be safe and sound in his bunker,whilst ordinary Brits take the flack..they already feel it in exorbitant energy prices

high cost of living and tax burden, industrial and economic stagnation and an invasion in the strait of Dover...soon they'll be conscripted and issued ration books and Anderson shelters again.

1 hour ago, johng said:

So in effect he has just declared war with Russia...don't worry he'll be safe and sound in his bunker,whilst ordinary Brits take the flack..they already feel it in exorbitant energy prices

high cost of living and tax burden, industrial and economic stagnation and an invasion in the strait of Dover...soon they'll be conscripted and issued ration books and Anderson shelters again.

Sounds like life in Russia.

Russia has China and North Korea helping them, so just the same.

Ukraine has been backed by the US and NATO from the start, if anyone thinks that firing storm shadow and other munitions into Russia is going to end well for anyone, they are in for a shock. but for sure it wont be Burnham his family or other members of parliament that will be fighting dying, though i expect like allthe others in the UK Europe, and US will do very well out of it, they must be raking in millions, better spend the billions on the UK people NHS etc

A lot of people are missing the nuances on this entire topic. Firstly, giving Ukraine the blueprints to the missile could mean it's the export version, and that version is usually less capable than the original, always like this with military equipment.

Secondly, it could signal that the UK, and possibly France working together, have come up with a new and improved version that will serve NATO better and are just getting financial and political favours for when all is done and the contracts to rebuild are awarded.

Thirdly, it shouldn't escape notice that the West has supported Ukraine to diminish and weaken Russia, but also Iran at the same time, to a point that it will take them decades to rebuild to the same threat level they were before all this started... Russia just presented an opportunity but Iran was deliberate. This frees up NATO, the West in general plus its allies in Asia to concentrate on China and it's containment without any wildcard interference from other bad actors.

Forthly, when Putler says the UK is now involved, then I guess it's awkward to point out that Iran, China, and North Korea are also participating in it too on Russia's side... an inconvenient truth Vlad. There is much manure being spread about all this as usual in such situations, but the main priority is to weaken Russia and Iran, and they walked right into it.

10 minutes ago, howerde said:

Ukraine has been backed by the US and NATO from the start, if anyone thinks that firing storm shadow and other munitions into Russia is going to end well for anyone, they are in for a shock. but for sure it wont be Burnham his family or other members of parliament that will be fighting dying, though i expect like allthe others in the UK Europe, and US will do very well out of it, they must be raking in millions, better spend the billions on the UK people NHS etc

Trump has a very funny way of "helping" Ukraine.

11 hours ago, bannork said:

Sounds like life in Russia.

But the British have flushing toilets.

5 hours ago, Roadsternut said:

But the British have flushing toilets.

We invented them.

17 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Trump has a very funny way of "helping" Ukraine.

Like Zelensky then.

23 hours ago, johng said:

So in effect he has just declared war with Russia...don't worry he'll be safe and sound in his bunker,whilst ordinary Brits take the flack..they already feel it in exorbitant energy prices

high cost of living and tax burden, industrial and economic stagnation and an invasion in the strait of Dover...soon they'll be conscripted and issued ration books and Anderson shelters again.

Burnham doesn't care. He hasn't got a clue what he's doing.

He actually got his guitar out and started strumming a Smiths song to the Ukrainian soldiers. What a clown.

I couldn't even make out what song it was, but presumably it was "Miserable Lie" from the debut album.

He should have taken the missiles with him , Ukraine needs them , promises

by a politician ,have little meaning in my eyes. Trump always going on about

Communists in America, but he is doing everything possible not to upset his

BFF Putin,

regards Worgeordie

Andy Burnham has used his first international trip as prime minister to deliver a powerful show of support for Ukraine, arriving in Kyiv with a promise of deeper military cooperation and a blunt message to Moscow.

His visit came as Ukraine faces intensifying Russian missile attacks and uncertainty over future US support.

Burnham stands with Ukraine as pressure mounts

Visiting Kyiv on Ukraine’s 35th Independence Day, Burnham witnessed the human cost of the war at close quarters. Families of fallen soldiers were honoured by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as photographs of young men killed in battle appeared on a giant screen.

At St Sophia Cathedral, Burnham compared Ukraine’s struggle with Britain’s resistance during the Second World War, telling Ukrainian leaders: “You hold that flame in the 21st.”

The symbolism was matched by a significant military pledge. Britain is sharing blueprints for components of Storm Shadow missiles, with France, allowing Ukraine eventually to develop its own version.

A weapon deal that could change the battlefield

The initiative could strengthen Kyiv’s ability to strike Russian military infrastructure deep behind the front lines, including missile launch sites, runways and other strategic targets.

But production is unlikely to begin immediately, while Ukraine urgently needs more air-defence missiles to counter Russia’s relentless ballistic attacks. Zelenskyy has called for 300 Patriot interceptors as winter approaches.

Russia has reacted angrily. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Britain of fuelling the conflict and warned that Moscow would destroy any Ukrainian Storm Shadow production facilities.

Britain steps into the gap left by America

The confrontation comes as Washington’s direct military support has weakened and efforts to broker a peace deal have stalled. Burnham nevertheless insisted that Britain would remain at the centre of European efforts to support Kyiv.

“Ukraine has been Europe’s protector,” he said, arguing that the country was not a burden but the frontline of European security.

For Kyiv, the visit offered more than weapons. It signalled that Britain intends to remain a crucial diplomatic and military partner — potentially giving Burnham an important role if Washington eventually returns to negotiations with Moscow.

Burnham’s visit to Kyiv marks a renewal of badly needed support for Ukraine

On 8/25/2026 at 7:27 AM, worgeordie said:

He should have taken the missiles with him , Ukraine needs them , promises

by a politician ,have little meaning in my eyes. Trump always going on about

Communists in America, but he is doing everything possible not to upset his

BFF Putin,

regards Worgeordie

The UK stopped procuring Storm Shadows years ago. The missiles sent over were nearly time expired. The production lines had long been taken down and scrapped. MBDA said in July 2025, they were resuming production after a break of 15 years. It would take some time to reconstitute the supply chain. Its even possible some components are no longer available, and alternatives need to be sourced, which is not straightforward. Whatever Storm Shadows and SCALPs we and the French had, and which were any good, the Ukrainians got them. You might see photos of former Defence Secretary John Healey touring a Stevenage factory last year, and seemingly a Stormshadow sitting on the floor, on a rig. That's a training example. It will take a while to get back up to speed. Its better for the Ukrainians to make them themselves, because we need the facilities for Stratus.

On 8/25/2026 at 2:27 PM, worgeordie said:

He should have taken the missiles with him , Ukraine needs them , promises

by a politician ,have little meaning in my eyes. Trump always going on about

Communists in America, but he is doing everything possible not to upset his

BFF Putin,

regards Worgeordie

You mean these guys?

The warmongers are going to sleepwalk us right into WW3.

Edited August 28Aug 28 by impulse

4 hours ago, impulse said:

You mean these guys?

The warmongers are going to sleepwalk us right into WW3.

Are those Russian's ,the ones that STARTED the war on Ukraine ,the photo is too small to make out,

you do know Russia started the aggression ?

regards worgeordie

2 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

Are those Russian's ,the ones that STARTED the war on Ukraine ,the photo is too small to make out,

you do know Russia started the aggression ?

regards worgeordie

Better?

If you think this started in 2022, or even 2014, you're ignoring decades of historical background. Though I'm not a big fan of Oliver Stone as historian, I suggest you watch his 2016 "Ukraine on Fire".

On 8/25/2026 at 1:21 PM, JonnyF said:

Burnham doesn't care. He hasn't got a clue what he's doing.

He actually got his guitar out and started strumming a Smiths song to the Ukrainian soldiers. What a clown.

I couldn't even make out what song it was, but presumably it was "Miserable Lie" from the debut album.

It was not their debut album but the second album Meat Is Murder and the track Rusholme Ruffians!

But that doesn't fit your narrative does it?

Edited August 28Aug 28 by Hamus Yaigh

8 minutes ago, Hamus Yaigh said:

But that doesn't fit your narrative does it?

Well spotted Hamus, you got there in the end 😄.

I didn't really think it was "Miserable Lie", I was insinuating that Burnham is a miserable liar.

He's also got terrible taste as Rusholme Ruffians is one of only a handful of Smiths tracks that is absolute pony.

17 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

Are those Russian's ,the ones that STARTED the war on Ukraine ,the photo is too small to make out,

you do know Russia started the aggression ?

regards worgeordie

The image was first posted on Twitter in 2014. It shows the "Asov Brigade", a self styled private militia founded in May 2014, following the April 2014 incursion into the Donbas by Russian paramilitaries. In March 2014, Russia occupied Crimea. "Coincidently" "anti-revolution" and pro-Russian protests began in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk provinces, collectively 'the Donbas'. In April 2014, Igor Girkin, a former FSB officer led a fifty-strong unit of heavily armed Russian militants who captured the strategic town of Sloviansk in eastern Ukraine. The unit were mostly Russian Armed Forces 'volunteers' from Russian-occupied Crimea and wore no insignia. Girkin admitted that this action sparked the Donbas War.

It is a fact, certainly when football was being played in the region, Ukrainian and Russian football teams were associated with so-called Ultras, who openly court WW2 German Nazi imagery. Stone might be shocked by all this, but thats how it is in Eastern Europe, possibly a result of decades of indoctrination which used to turn defeat of Nazi Germany into a means to prop up an equally repressive, rotten regime.

Likely the men in that photo are now either all dead, or legged it. If we are picking and choosing militias in this war, lets talk about DShRG Rusich, active in Ukraine since 2014 (and tried their hand in Syria), the Russian Imperial Movement, which deploys people in Ukraine via the Russian Imperial Army and the Russian Orthodox Army, religious fruitcakes fighting in Donbas.

https://medium.com/dfrlab/an-untimely-death-reveals-the-nature-of-a-russian-neo-nazi-unit-that-fought-in-syria-5398a7d28e0a

https://united24media.com/latest-news/russian-neo-nazis-group-launch-photo-contest-with-killed-ukrainian-pows-13513

https://ctc.westpoint.edu/the-russian-imperial-movement-in-the-ukraine-wars-2014-2023/

https://www.voanews.com/a/how-russia-uses-neo-nazi-groups-to-spread-chaos/6629981.html

Its fair to say you need to know your Nordic runes.

https://www.ukrainer.net/en/azov-arent-neo-nazis/

“Russian propaganda has fostered the impression of a criminal, neo-Nazi “nationalist battalion” that allegedly exists in Ukraine. Propagandists use objective facts (such as the political past of the battalion’s founders) to create an impressive picture. This picture is fake, but Russian propaganda should not be underestimated.

It is a systematic, professional, and convincing narrative — especially in Western society, which is not accustomed to such blatant lies. Western society typically rejects a black-and-white vision of the world and considers more complex models. Typically, this vision looks for the truth somewhere in the middle, between the polarized extremes. But as Polish historian Adam Michnik said, “The truth does not lie in the middle; it lies where it lies.”

Propaganda only works when you are willing to believe in it. If one internally agrees with propaganda, the convincing part is easy. It is convenient for the West to lull itself with fables that everything is complicated and ambiguous. In this case, there is no need to intervene and no need to feel guilty, the conscience is clear.

One reason the myth about Ukrainian Nazism is still viable is that it benefits not only Russia. This is a great argument for doing nothing, watching Ukraine fight alone with the enemy, and not feeling much sympathy for the fighters of Azov, many of whom were killed in an unequal battle, defending Mariupol with all their might, while others are now in Russian captivity.”