UK government has not authorized Ukraine to use Storm Shadow in Kursk region

The Telegraph reports this with reference to a government source.

The article says that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked Western allies to allow the Armed Forces to use long-range missiles against targets deep in Russia. He instructed officials of the Ministry of Defense and diplomats "to present a list of necessary actions on our part to obtain permission from our partners to use long-range weapons to protect our territory".

However, according to The Telegraph, the British government did not allow the Ukrainian Armed Forces to use Storm Shadow in the Kursk region.

"There has been no change," the newspaper's source said.

A source in the UK government also explained that his country's position has not changed.

"We are providing military assistance to support Ukraine's clear right to self-defense against Russia's illegal attacks under international humanitarian law. We are clear that the equipment provided by the UK is for the defense of Ukraine," he said.

Former British tank commander Hamish de Bretton-Gordon told the newspaper that the Storm Shadow missiles can strike "railway junctions and key roads leading to Kursk, as well as any airfields within a 100-mile radius (approximately 160 km - ed.)".

The article also notes that during a visit to the UK in July, Zelenskyy lobbied Prime Minister Keir Starmer to lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of munitions with a range of about 250 km.

Ukraine’s cross-border incursion in Russia’s Kursk region

On August 6, the authorities of Russia's Kursk region stated that the Ukrainian Armed Forces allegedly tried to break through the Russian border, but were allegedly pushed back. Later, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that "the Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group retreated to its territory.”

Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate refused to comment on the statements regarding the Kursk region. However, NV media, citing its own source in Ukrainian intelligence, wrote that the events in the Kursk region "definitely did not involve fighters of the Russian Volunteer Corps, who are fighting as part of Ukraine's Armed Forces.”

The Institute for the Study of War noted that the Russian Defense Ministry, acting governor of the Kursk region Alexei Smirnov, and some propagandists have different versions of the events in the Kursk region.

On August 7, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin convened the Russian military leadership to discuss the situation in the Kursk region, which he called a "large-scale provocation." At the time, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called on the international community to "strongly condemn the Kyiv regime's criminal attacks on Russian territory."

On the same day, Russian media reported that workers at the Kursk nuclear power plant feared that the plant's management had not prepared for a possible attack by the Ukrainian armed forces.

Additionally, in the Kursk region, the Russians have started forming UAV operator units from civilians, providing them with up to 10 hours of training.

On August 7, a state of emergency was introduced in the Kursk region.

On August 8, the Institute for War Studies reported that Ukrainian troops confirmed advancing up to 10 km deep into the Kursk region as mechanized offensives continued.

On August 8, Russia’s National Guard announced that it had implemented additional security measures at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant to protect a "particularly important facility."

The Washington Post reported that Ukraine has taken control of the gas metering station in Sudzha, Kursk region. Previously, Russia claimed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had occupied several border villages and part of the town of Sudzha.

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh stated that Ukraine’s actions in the Kursk region in Russia "are consistent with U.S. policy" and do not cause any escalation.

On Friday, August 9, it was reported that terrorists from PMC Wagner intend to fight for Russia in the Kursk region.