Moscow summons British envoy over weapons supplies to Ukraine

Also on Friday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Poland has joined an anti-ballistic missile coalition with Ukraine and other allies.Follow us on GoogleBritish Prime Minister Andy Burnham interacts with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, during their visit to Portsmouth Naval Base to meet UK and Ukrainian troops, July 27, 2026. (photo credit: Simon Jones/Pool via REUTERS)SEPTEMBER 18, 2026 20:09The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Britain's chargé d'affaires in Moscow, Danae Dholakia, on Friday to issue a formal protest about what it called London's "further increase" in weapons supplies to Ukraine.In a statement, the ministry said that by sending more arms to Kyiv, "London is placing itself in the position of an accomplice to the bloody atrocities committed by the Kyiv regime, which can only be characterized as terrorism and war crimes."A spokesperson for Britain's Foreign Office called the summoning "yet another attempt to deflect attention from Russia's barbaric full-scale invasion of Ukraine and discredit the UK on the world stage."Russia currently has no ambassador in London, and relations are dire.The departure of the previous Russian ambassador, Andrei Kelin, in July prompted British media speculation - denied by Russia - that Moscow was downgrading diplomatic relations because of London's role as one of Ukraine's biggest supporters.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (R) welcomes Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (L) as he arrived to attend the Carpathian 8 summit in state residence in Ivano-Frankivsk region on September 18, 2026. (credit: Genya SAVILOV / AFP via Getty Images)Poland joins anti-ballistic missile coalition with UkraineAlso on Friday, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Poland has joined an anti-ballistic missile coalition with Ukraine and other allies."From today, Poland is part of this major project... we agreed on the forms and frameworks of this cooperation," Tusk said in a video posted on X/Twitter.Tusk attended a summit on Friday of a new regional grouping of eight Carpathian countries, held in western Ukraine and launched by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.Ukraine and nine European countries announced in July an air-defense coalition that would jointly develop a new anti-ballistic missile system as an alternative, cheaper solution to the US Patriot system.Tusk told a press conference at the summit that Poland has prepared a new "significant" donation package for Ukraine, without giving further detail."I will be very consistent here. No one will change my opinion that Poland has to support Ukraine in its war against Russian aggression... History cannot divide us vis-à-vis Russia today," Tusk said.After his bilateral meeting with Tusk at the summit, Zelensky thanked Poland for the new aid package."Ukraine and Poland are strong neighbors, friends, and partners, and we have one common enemy," he said on the Telegram app.Follow us on Google