Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Russian parliament, threatened to ‘use weapons that will wipe everyone out’ if Elon Musk failed to block use of his Starlink internet service by Kyiv’s forces
Russia has issued a chilling threat after Ukraine hit a major military airfield with suspected British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.
The same missiles also hit Sevastopol, headquarters of Putin’s Black Sea Fleet in annexed Crimea, say reports.
And Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Russian parliament and member of Kremlin’s security council, threatened to ‘use weapons that will wipe everyone out’ if Elon Musk failed to block use of his Starlink satellite internet service by Kyiv’s forces.
Referring to a disputed strike on a dormitory in Starobilsk in occupied Luhansk region at the weekend, he said: “The criminal Kyiv regime targeted defenceless children with drones. 21 children died, most of them girls. This is a crime against humanity, and it has no statute of limitations.
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“Zelensky and his cronies are responsible. Those who target children, the elderly, and women with missiles and drones are scum…. Elon Musk, for example, must understand that his satellites are being used to kill children.
“His respectable image is completely at odds with what is actually happening. All this could lead to us using weapons that will wipe everyone out. We must not let things get to that point. Let’s honour the memory of children.”
The threat comes even though Russia’s own disclosures show none of the 21 victims were underage. At the same time, Putin’s forces have killed 791 Ukrainian children with 2,752 injured, a total of 3,543 child casualties during the war.
Among the dead in Starobilsk was Irina Zhivotikova, 19, a student beauty contestant who won the title Miss Audience Choice in the February pageant, said pro-Moscow sources. Ukraine insisted it had hit the Russian Rubikon military special unit in Starobilsk.
Meanwhile, smoke was seen rising from ‘Baltimore’ military airfield in Voronezh region, home to Russia’s Su-34 fighter-bombers of the 47th Guards Bomber Aviation Regiment. The base is frequently used to strike Ukraine.
Storm Shadow missiles were believed to have been used, according to Exilenova+ Telegram channel. They are cruise missiles developed by the UK and France in the 1990s. Launched from aircraft, they have a range more than 155 miles and can travel at speeds exceeding 600mph.
Sleeping accommodation was hit in the strike, it was reported. Storm Shadow missiles were also used in a strike on Sevastopol, hitting a Russian Central Bank building. Earlier it was claimed that the acting headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet’s aerial arm had been targeted.
In Tuapse, a fire broke at the sea terminal near the oil refinery in the fifth recent Ukrainian strike on the Black Sea hub.
