‘WW3 has already begun’ claims former Ukrainian military chief as China, Iran and North Korea now ‘stand openly beside Putin’
Ukraine’s former military chief has claimed that “World War Three has already begun”, with China, Iran, and North Korea now “standing openly beside Putin”.
Valery Zaluzhny, the ex-commander-in-chief who was sacked by Volodymyr Zelensky, said that the involvement of Russia’s allies means the conflict is now on a global scale.
“I believe that in 2024 we can absolutely believe that the Third World War has begun,” said Zaluzhny, who is now Ukraine’s envoy to the United Kingdom.
Speaking during the UP100 award ceremony in Kyiv, he explained: “Because in 2024, Ukraine is no longer facing Russia. Soldiers from North Korea are standing in front of Ukraine. Let’s be honest.
“Already in Ukraine, the Iranian ‘Shahedis’ are killing civilians absolutely openly, without any shame.”
He added that North Korean and Chinese weapons are currently flying into Ukraine.
Earlier today, Sir Keir Starmer was asked “are we at war” as he appeared whilst on a BBC Radio show.
The Prime Minister said: “No, we are not at war, but Ukraine certainly is, because Ukraine has been invaded by Russia, and that war has now been going on for just over 1,000 days.
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“That’s 1,000 days of aggression from Russia and 1,000 days of sacrifice for Ukraine, and that is why we have said consistently that we stand by Ukraine. We cannot allow Putin to win this war.”
Earlier this week, Ukraine fired British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles into Russia for the first time during the ongoing war. Parts of a missile were found in the village of Marine, Kursk, on Wednesday.
British Storm Shadow missiles have a range of 150 miles, meaning that Ukraine could now strike targets inside Russia.
A top UK military chief has said the British Army would be ready to fight “tonight” after threats from Putin, after the Russian president said it “reserved the right” to use nuclear weapons in the event of “aggression” against Russia or Belarus.
Russia said it will retaliate with conventional weapons if it creates a “critical threat to their sovereignty”.
The Russian President also approved changes to the nation’s nuclear doctrine, setting out new conditions under which its arsenal could be used. The update was proposed back in September, and was approved on the 1,000th day of the conflict.
Rob Magowan, the deputy chief of the British defence said the Army was ready to fight imminently after MPs asked him how many British brigades could get to Nato’s eastern front in the event of an escalation with Russia.
Magowan responded: “If the British Army was asked to fight tonight, it would fight tonight.”
However, concerns still remain about the UK’s military capability, as its land army is at its smallest size since the 1700s.