Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu has said there were fewer and fewer steps left before a potential “nuclear collision” between Russia and the West, reports say.
Shoigu was responding to claims that Britain would supply Ukraine with ammunition containing depleted uranium, a move to which he said Moscow would respond, Interfax reported.
Speaking in London on Monday, defence minister Annabel Goldie said some of the ammunition for the Challenger 2 battle tanks that Britain was sending to Ukraine includes armour piercing rounds which contain depleted uranium.
Elsewhere, Nato secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg has pointed to “signs” that Vladimir Putin has requested lethal weapons from China.
“We haven’t seen any proof that China is delivering lethal weapons to Russia but we have seen some signs that this has been a request from Russia, and that this is an issue that is considered in Beijing by the Chinese authorities,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.
It comes after the Kremlin said Putin and Xi Jinping discussed Beijing’s peace plan for Ukraine as the two leaders held a “thorough” exchange of views during their first day of talks in Moscow.
