Bombs could land on Ukraine 'in minutes' with 'no notice' once Putin gives order

Russia’s attack on Ukraine could happen with ‘no notice’ once Vladimir Putin gives the order, Britain’s armed forces minister has warned.

James Heappey said Moscow may fire missiles and bombs on Kiev but it is ‘impossible’ to know how many British nationals are left in the country.

Speaking to Sky News, he urged any remaining Brits to leave while there are still commercial flights running and motorways into the European Union are open.

‘We’ve seen now that there’s 130,000 combat troops around Ukraine’s land borders,’ he said.

‘There’s thousands more on amphibious shipping in the Black Sea. Russia has concentrated artillery missile systems and combat air in the area.

‘And, perhaps more ominously, although it grabs less headlines, all of the combat enablers, the logistics, the fuel, the medical supplies, the bridging assets, are all also now in place.

‘So, the reason that the travel advice changed on Friday and the urgency of the messaging since is that the attack could effectively now happen with no notice.’

Mr Heappey said the freedom of movement from Ukraine into the EU means the situation is vastly different to the mission to save Afghans six months ago.

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The RAF evacuated 15,000 people from Kabul in Operation Pitting as the country collapsed to the Taliban.

‘This is a very different type of country to Afghanistan,’ Mr Heappey said.

‘There is free movement across the border of Ukraine into the European Union and people can just get in their cars and drive across into Poland.

‘The Foreign Office have had a website, running for some time, which has allowed British nationals in Ukraine to register their details and thus allow the Foreign Office to communicate directly with them.

‘We are beyond the time where I’m advising people to register on our website. I’m being very, very clear to people that they should leave Ukraine now whilst there are the commercial means to do so and whilst the motorways are available for them to drive out over the border.

‘This isn’t a warning about something that could happen in three months’ time, this isn’t a warning that will be followed by further warnings because greater imminence has been reached.

‘This is a warning because minutes after Putin gives the order, missiles and bombs could be landing on Ukrainian cities, and that means British citizens should leave now whilst they have the opportunities to do so.’

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