THE British government’s plans to send armoured anti-aircraft vehicles to Ukraine risk escalating the war, peace campaigners warned today. 

The Stormer vehicle, manufactured by British arms giant BAE Systems, launches Starstreak anti-aircraft missiles, which can be used to target planes and helicopters.

The provision of the missile launchers has not yet been officially confirmed, but Defence Secretary Ben Wallace is expected to make a statement on military assistance to Ukraine later this week. 

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss pledged earlier this month to step up Britain’s arms deliveries and US President Joe Biden approved weapons shipments to Ukraine worth £610 million last week.

Today, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told ministers that it was “more vital than ever to increase global support” for the war-torn country.

However, peace campaigners in Ukraine and Britain raised alarm at proposals to send more weapons into the conflict zone, warning that such action would “not help to achieve a just or diplomatic solution.”

Responding to reports of the provision of Stormer vehicles, Symon Hill of the Peace Pledge Union (PPU) said: “It is one thing to see a Ukrainian pick up a gun in desperation; it is quite another to see the likes of BAE Systems sitting hundreds of miles away and profiting from the situation. 

“It is impossible to believe that Boris Johnson and BAE are motivated by concern for freedom and democracy when they arm the Saudi forces who are killing civilians in Yemen as Russian forces kill civilians in Ukraine. 

“The mass of people in all countries have more in common with each other than with the arms dealers, generals and political leaders who promote war in their name.”

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) general secretary Kate Hudson argued that the plans would “escalate this war, rather than bring it to an urgent conclusion,” with a danger that the conflict could turn nuclear. 
 
“The war has already altered the political balance in Europe and is accelerating its militarisation,” she said. “This will have a profoundly negative impact on our societies, engendering a culture of violence and nationalism.

“And more and more of the people’s money will be squandered on weapons and war, instead of being invested in health, jobs and education.”
 
Both the PPU and CND stressed that, instead of increasing militarisation, foreign nations should instead push for dialogue and negotiation in a bid to secure a lasting peace in the region.