Britain "can do a lot more" to aid Ukraine in the Russian war, according to an American think-tank founder who suggests the UK offers great "rhetorical support" but "it has not always been matched by the amount of spending".
As the UK struggles to tackle a £22billion blackhole in public finances, Russia expert Dmitri Alperovitch claims that Britain ranks among the lowest per capita GDP in supporting Ukraine across Nato countries.
According to the latest Government statistics, the UK has committed almost £12.7billion for Ukraine, with £7.6billion in military support and £5billion in non-military support.
However, Alperovitch - author of World on the Brink - argues that more could be done.
'Spending doesn't match the rhetoric!' as Britain told it 'can do a lot more' for Ukraine
Reuters/ GB NewsHe told GB News: "I think at least the rhetorical support across the political spectrum in the UK, both with the Tories and now Labour, has been very strong.
"It has not always been matched by the amount of spending, in fact, per capita GDP support for Ukraine, UK ranks one of the lowest in Nato.
"So even though it has provided some critical capabilities like the Storm Shadow missiles and the anti-tank missiles early on in the war that were very critical, I think the United Kingdom can do a lot more.
"We'll see if the Labour Government increases the amount of aid that is sent into Ukraine."
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
It comes as Nato faces calls to lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of long range drones supplied by western allies.
On Wednesday, president Volodymyr Zelenskysaid: "We continue to insist that decisiveness now, removing restrictions on Ukraine for long-range strikes now, will help us end the war as quickly as possible in a just manner for Ukraine and the entire world."
Alperovitch said the use of these missiles is "very important" for Ukraine.
He said: "The Ukrainians have wanted to use those missiles to target Russian air bases in particular, as well as fuel depots surrounding Ukraine and on Russian territory.
Russia expert Dmitri Alperovitch claims that Britain ranks among the lowest per capita GDP in supporting Ukraine across Nato countries
GB News
"Of course those air bases have been used for some really devastating missile attacks against energy infrastructure, military command and control sites and others across Ukraine including tragic civilian victims who have lost their lives as a result of these missile strikes.
"So this is very important for Ukraine. The United States has so far essentially held a veto over this because obviously it has a veto directly over the attack arms that it is providing to Ukraine.
"But even with the Storm Shadow missiles from the UK and the French, the United States is believed to to be providing critical support for the programming of these missiles - so without US approval, those missiles cannot be provided by the British and the French, even though they're believed to want to do so. "