Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the UK’s fresh donations of air defence missiles would complement the air defence systems pledged by the United States, as he arrived for the NATO meeting in Brussels .
Earlier, the government said it would donate the missiles capable of shooting down cruise missiles to Ukraine in the wake of Russian strikes on Kyiv and other cities in recent days.
Wallace refused to comment on the fears that Russia could use nuclear weapons, but said NATO was “here to make sure our readiness is for whatever is thrown at us.”
Wallace added that western supply chains were capable of supplying Ukraine with arms for the immediate future, while casting doubt on Russia’s own supply chains.
NATO will continue to hold its annual nuclear deterrent exercises next week, and Wallace said the alliance does not want “to do things out of routine”.
Russia would hold its own exercises the week after.