Caribbean Crisis 2.0: Russia Warns Britain of Strikes After CIA Chief’s Moscow Visit

Sharp statements from the Russian Foreign Ministry following CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow have created a situation reminiscent of a new Caribbean crisis. Russia could strike British targets, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said today. She said retaliatory strikes could be carried out “against any British military facilities in Ukraine and beyond its borders.” Zakharova stressed that Moscow had “repeatedly warned” London about the consequences of Ukrainian attacks on Russian regions using British weapons, including Storm Shadow missiles and unmanned surface vessels in the Black Sea, as well as the establishment of production facilities for such weapons in Ukraine. Zakharova’s statement came after reports in The Wall Street Journal, Politico and CBS News that CIA Director John Ratcliffe had made an urgent trip to Moscow to warn Russia against launching direct military strikes on NATO countries, which could trigger a response under Article 5 of the alliance.