Putin makes a frightening threat to the United Kingdom
Vladimir Putin has a frightening weapon in his arsenal that can be launched from aircraft within the range of a possible strike on the UK, writes the Daily Express.
Russian "superweapon" can be deployed within striking the UK
Jacob Paul
Russia has the most extensive nuclear arsenal in the world, numbering 6,000 nuclear weapons. And with the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, many fear that Putin may push the red button, since he has already put his nuclear forces "on alert." Meanwhile, several Russian politicians have warned that the United Kingdom may be one of the targets.
For example, State Duma deputy Yuri Shvytkin threatened that "if necessary" Russia is ready to use its nuclear weapons to "destroy the whole of Great Britain in two minutes."
In addition, Russia has a "superweapon" – hypersonic missiles "Dagger" – which can be launched from aircraft within the range of a possible strike on the UK.
Alex Lord, an analyst from Sibylline research firm, told the following in an interview with Daily Express: "The Dagger is an air–based tactical hypersonic weapon, which is a modified version of the existing Iskander ballistic missile systems."
"These missiles can reach speeds of up to Mach 10, and their maximum range after launch is 2 thousand kilometers."
"These missiles are launched from MiG-31K aircraft, some of which were in the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad before the start of the Russian special operation on February 24. Being deployed there, they are within the range of a possible strike on the UK."
"Of all the so-called modern “superweapons”, Dagger missiles are the only weapon that Russia used during its special operation in Ukraine. The Ministry of Defense of Russia reported a lot of strikes carried out with the use of these weapons on static military targets in the south and west of Ukraine."
"Although the Daggers are capable of carrying a nuclear charge, so far in Ukraine they have been used as a non-nuclear strike weapon.“
However, "Daggers" are only one of the six types of "superweapons" from which Putin can now choose.
Another such weapon is the intercontinental ballistic missiles "Sarmat", which in NATO countries have been called "Satan-2".
They can carry up to 10 nuclear warheads, develop tremendous speed and strike targets on the territory of the United States and Great Britain.
And the United Kingdom may be completely defenseless before them.
Professor Andrew Futter, an expert on international relations from the University of Leicester, said in an interview with the Daily Express that the lack of defensive weapons systems could make the UK extremely vulnerable to a possible enemy strike.
"We do not have the means to intercept and destroy Russian ballistic missiles," he said.
"Almost from the very beginning of the Cold War, the UK relied on deterrence, because defense (both active missile defense and passive civil defense) is extremely expensive, and in some cases it is simply impossible to provide it."
"At the heart of UK policy is the threat of a retaliatory nuclear strike in the event of an attack."
"No enemy will risk attacking the UK with nuclear weapons, because this will be followed by a retaliatory nuclear strike."
According to Professor Futter, the United Kingdom has not invested in active defense technologies since the 1990s.
Currently, it has at its disposal sea-based deterrents that have been deployed since about the 1960s.
The government calls them "the most powerful, most sustainable and most cost-effective platform."
However, government representatives also reported the following: "The UK retains only the minimum amount of destructive power necessary to ensure that our deterrents will reliably protect against the full range of nuclear threats from adversaries."
"Our patrol submarines can open fire within a few days, and since 1994 we have not directed our missiles at any state."
