Kremlin Adviser Warns UK Factories Making Drones for Ukraines Could Face Attacks From 'Unknown Sources'

A Kremlin adviser has warned that UK factories producing drones for Ukraine could face attacks from 'unknown sources', as tensions between London and Moscow sharpened on Tuesday, 25 August, after Britain agreed to share classified missile technology with Kyiv.

Andrei Fedorov, a former Russian deputy foreign minister, told media that he could not '100 percent' rule out a 'semi-military' response against British interests.

The warning followed Prime Minister Andy Burnham's first overseas visit since entering Downing Street. In Kyiv on 24 August, Ukraine's Independence Day, Burnham announced that Britain would allow defence company MBDA to release classified information on British components used in the French-produced SCALP long-range missile, enabling Ukraine to establish local assembly lines.

UK Drone Factories Warned

Fedorov's remarks went further than a conventional diplomatic protest. Asked by the BBC what a possible Russian response could look like, he referred to cyberattacks and 'political steps' before raising the possibility of action against British companies.

'There might be different political steps, and I cannot exclude 100 percent that there might be some semi-military,' he said.

Pressed on what that could mean, Fedorov pointed specifically to 'enterprises' and 'factories which are producing drones for Ukraine'. He suggested such facilities could be attacked by actors operating from 'unknown sources', rather than openly by Russia.

Fedorov did not announce an attack, nor did he provide evidence that Russia had authorised or prepared one. His comments were framed as a possibility, albeit one delivered against an increasingly hostile backdrop between Moscow and London.

The Kremlin has also been careful to connect Britain's military support with what it describes as direct involvement in the war. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that the UK's decision to provide missile technology was adding 'fuel to the fire' and preventing even the slightest progress towards peace. He also said the Russian military was gathering information on missile production sites in order to destroy them.

The two statements should not be conflated. Peskov was referring to missile production in Ukraine, while Fedorov specifically raised the possibility of attacks on UK factories making drones for Ukraine.

Missile Plans Push Tensions Further

Britain's new commitment is intended to give Ukraine a longer-term domestic weapons capability rather than simply another shipment of missiles. The government said the release of classified information on UK components for SCALP would help establish local assembly lines in Ukraine. SCALP is the French designation for the missile known in Britain as Storm Shadow.

The decision was announced during Burnham's visit to Kyiv, where he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and chaired a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing. The UK government has described its support for Ukraine as unwavering and said the new missile arrangement complements its wider effort to develop low-cost, advanced long-range strike weapons for Kyiv.

Moscow sees the same decision very differently.

Peskov accused Britain of 'participating in this war' and argued that London was deliberately obstructing efforts towards peace. The Kremlin's rhetoric has intensified as British-made weapons and Ukrainian strikes against Russian targets have become a recurring point of friction. Earlier warnings from Moscow had already threatened consequences over the reported use of British-made drones in attacks inside Russia.

Burnham showed little inclination to retreat. Asked about Moscow's accusation that Britain was pouring fuel on the conflict, he responded, 'Who started the fire? That's the question, isn't it?' He also said Britain would continue supporting Ukraine despite what he called 'outrageous threats' from Russia.

For now, there is no confirmation that any British drone factory has been targeted or that an attack is imminent. Fedorov's warning remains a statement of possible Russian retaliation, not evidence of an operation already under way. But with London now sharing sensitive missile technology and Moscow openly discussing possible action against British interests, the threat has moved further.