Michael Weiss and James Rushton report:

A year ago, it was said to be a direct path to “World War III.” Now it’s being announced as an accomplished fact.

The United Kingdom is in the process of delivering Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine, the British government confirmed Thursday, giving Kyiv a much-needed and long coveted long-range precision strike capability.

British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said that the supply of the missiles will “allow Ukraine to push back Russian forces based on Ukrainian sovereign territory,” adding that “none of this would have been necessary had Russia not invaded.”

The Storm Shadow is an advanced air-launched cruise missile with low observable characteristics, meaning it is more difficult to detect and counter by air defense systems than a traditional cruise missile. Depending on the variant, it has a range of up to 350 miles and carries a 990-pound warhead. In British, French, and Italian service it has been used successfully in Syria, Iraq and Libya.

Even if the U.K. dispatches the shorter-range variant, the Storm Shadow can still hit targets as far as 155 miles away. That would put every single Russian position in all of occupied Ukraine, including Crimea, in range. [Continue reading…]