Russia threatens UK over Ukraine attacks with British drones

Greg Sullivan, Bloomberg News on Aug 18, 2026

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Russia warned that the U.K. would face “consequences for which it will have to answer” after reports that Kyiv used drones made by British companies to carry out strikes inside Russian territory.

“London is deliberately opting for an escalation,” the Russian embassy in London said in a statement Monday. The deeper the U.K.’s involvement in the conflict and the greater its support for Kyiv, “the higher the price it will pay.”

U.K. government minister Lilian Greenwood responded on Tuesday morning, telling Times Radio that Britain “won’t be bullied in this way.”

“Our message back to the Russians is that we stand with Ukraine,” Greenwood said. “We’ve stood with Ukraine throughout this time” since Russia’s invasion and “will continue to do so,” she said.

Ukraine deployed drones made by two companies in the U.K. as part of strikes deep into Russia over the past six months, The Times of London reported Sunday. The report said targets included oil refineries in Volgograd in southwest Russia and Yaroslavl near Moscow.

The U.K. has previously supplied Kyiv with Storm Shadow cruise missiles that are capable of reaching long-range targets inside Russia. Ukrainian forces first fired those missiles against Russian targets in November 2024.

Ukraine has been intensifying its drone strikes on Russia, targeting oil refineries and logistics infrastructure in attacks that have curtailed operations at several major facilities. The campaign has triggered fuel shortages across much of Russia that the government has struggled to contain.

—With assistance from Teddy Stoddart.