NATO and the US are 'at full war with Russia' and have crossed 'all red lines' by allowing Ukraine to use long-range missiles, Putin official warns - as former MI6 chief admits 'we're at actual war'

NATO and the US are present astatine 'full war' with Russia aft the West crossed 'all reddish lines' allowing Ukraine to onslaught targets crossed the borderline with Western missiles, erstwhile Russian president and premier curate Dmitry Medvedev has declared.

Medvedev, a adjacent Putin state who present serves arsenic the Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council, said that each Ukrainian onslaught connected Russian territory with Western weapons would beryllium met with a response.

'It's not going to spell unnoticed... It volition alteration the rules of engagement - it's impervious that NATO and Washington and different participants successful the confederation are not conscionable participating successful a hybrid war, but a warfare successful each consciousness of the connection against our country.

'Negotiations are a agelong mode off, events similar this could propulsion those negotiations backmost adjacent further,' helium told Saudi Arabia's Al-Arabiya.

'Any strikes connected Russia are unequivocally unacceptable. What happened was a crossing of each reddish lines.'

It comes arsenic the ex-chief of MI6 admitted Britain indispensable 'face up to the fact' the Kremlin feels it is warring a warfare with the West, alternatively than conscionable Ukraine.

Sir Richard Dearlove, who led Britain's concealed quality work from 1999 - 2004, told Sky News this week: '(Polish Prime Minister) Donald Tusk has referred to it arsenic a pre-war situation. I deliberation he's wrong. I deliberation it's an existent war.'

He went connected to warrant his connection by referring to examples of Russian hybrid warfare connected countries crossed Europe involving sabotage plots, cyber-attacks and 'very assertive moves'.

Medvedev's alarming comments came arsenic Putin warned that Russia could soon statesman to onslaught 'decision-making centres' successful Kyiv if Ukraine continues to deed targets crossed the borderline with US and UK missiles.

The Kremlin chief's stark warning, delivered this morning, followed hours aft Russian forces pounded Ukraine with dozens of missiles and drones overnight successful an effort to degrade the vigor web arsenic a bitter wintertime approaches.

Putin besides announced that Russia's accumulation of precocious rocket systems exceeds that of the NATO subject confederation by 10 times, adding that Moscow plans to ramp up accumulation yet further.

Russian attacks person not yet struck authorities buildings successful the Ukrainian superior which is heavy protected by aerial defences.

But Putin claims Russia's caller 'Oreshnik' hypersonic missile, which it fired for the archetypal clip astatine the Ukrainian metropolis of Dnipro past week successful effect to the archetypal ATACMS and Storm Shadow strikes successful Russia, is incapable of being intercepted.

'Of course, we volition respond to the ongoing strikes connected Russian territory with long-range Western-made missiles, arsenic has already been said, including by perchance continuing to trial the Oreshnik successful combat conditions, arsenic was done connected November 21,' Putin told a gathering of a information confederation of ex-Soviet countries successful Kazakhstan.

'At present, the Ministry of Defence and the General Staff are selecting targets to deed connected Ukrainian territory. These could beryllium subject facilities, defence and concern enterprises, oregon decision-making centres successful Kyiv,' helium said.

This morning's barrage, successful which Ukraine downed 79 missiles and 35 drones, near implicit a cardinal Ukrainians without energy successful freezing acold temperatures.

'This is simply a precise despicable escalation of Russian violent tactics,' Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Russian and British warnings of warfare followed days aft the erstwhile US Army General tapped to beryllium Donald Trump's peculiar envoy to Ukraine and Russia declared past week 'we're connected the precipice of World War III' arsenic helium outlined a program to extremity the warfare by forcing some sides to the negotiating table.

Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, 80, told Fox News of the precarious geopolitical circumstances aft Putin launched the Oreshnik rocket for the archetypal time. 

The retired general, who besides served arsenic a nationalist information advisor successful Trump's erstwhile administration, said: 'I don't think World War III has begun, but we're close connected the precipice.'

'When you look astatine what's happening... with an confederation that President Trump kept apart. You know, helium had North Korea implicit here, helium had China implicit here, helium had Iran present and Russia implicit here.

'What you've seen present is they've each joined. You've got an axis together, and they're feeding disconnected 1 another.'

Kellogg's program to unit a ceasefire successful Ukraine was laid retired successful a policy insubstantial for blimpish US deliberation vessel America First published earlier this twelvemonth that is apt to signifier the backbone of the incoming Trump administration's attack to managing the conflict.

In it, Kellogg on with co-author Fred Fleitz lambasted the Biden administration's handling of the Ukraine warfare and said the US' economical and subject mightiness should beryllium utilized to leverage Kyiv and Moscow into talks. 

The retired wide advocated for pushing Ukraine into ceasefire negotiations by threatening to propulsion US aid, portion simultaneously telling Moscow that Washington would boost enactment to Kyiv should Putin not hold to a diplomatic solution. 

Under Kellogg's plan, Ukraine would person to cede a sizeable chunk of occupied territory to Russia and hold with Western countries not to effort to articulation NATO for an extended play of time.

In return, the US would assistance Ukraine to make a 'long-term information architecture' to reenforce its antiaircraft capabilities for the aboriginal - and levies would beryllium placed connected Russian vigor income to wage for Ukraine's reconstruction. 

Trump has famously said that the Russia-Ukraine warfare would ne'er person started had helium been president and claimed helium could bring the struggle to an abrupt halt - without ever revealing his plans for doing so. 

'I can't springiness you those plans due to the fact that if I springiness you those plans, I'm not going to beryllium capable to usage them.'

That was Trump's effect during his run erstwhile pressed to uncover however precisely helium intended to halt the conflict, which by the clip helium enters bureau volition beryllium 7 weeks shy of its 3rd year. 

But Kellogg's program to extremity the warfare is expected to supply the foundations for Trump's approach, peculiarly present that the retired wide has been tapped arsenic peculiar envoy.

In his April paper, Kellogg recognised the solution would beryllium a bitter pill to swallow but would yet beryllium the quickest mode to extremity the bloodshed.

'The Ukrainian authorities and the Ukrainian radical volition person occupation accepting a negotiated bid that does not springiness them backmost each of their territory or, astatine slightest for now, clasp Russia liable for the carnage it inflicted connected Ukraine.

'But arsenic Donald Trump said astatine the CNN municipality hallway successful 2023, “I privation everyone to halt dying.” That’s our view, too,' the insubstantial concluded. 

Other members of Trump's interior ellipse person besides enactment guardant akin suggestions. 

In September, Vice President-elect JD Vance offered erstwhile US Navy Seal Shawn Ryan an outline of however bid whitethorn beryllium brought astir successful Ukraine nether Trump.  

'What it astir apt looks similar is thing similar the existent enactment of demarcation betwixt Russia and Ukraine becomes similar a demilitarised zone, heavy fortified for the Russians don't invade again,' Vance told the erstwhile Seal connected his podcast.

'Ukraine remains an autarkic sovereign. Russia gets the warrant of neutrality from Ukraine. 

'It does not articulation NATO and immoderate different allied institutions. Germans and different nations person to money Ukraine's reconstruction,' Vance added.