An official of Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to target Prince William with drone strikes if “he gets into our sights”.
Dmitry Rogozin's remarks come as the Prince of Wales rode in a British Challenger 2 tank during a visit to Estonia supporting UK troops there.
Writing online alongside a picture of the royal during a military exercise near the Russian border, Rogozin said: “This is a great target for my drone pilots.”
He added: “We haven’t yet zeroed out the heir to the throne, let alone the traditionally hostile Great Britain. Let him do some PR for now, but if he gets into our sights, we won’t stand on ceremony.”
Last week, Rogozin crushed hopes of peace in the region when he appealed for new volunteers for his military unit
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Rogozin is the current Kremlin-appointed senator for illegally annexed Ukrainian territory Zaporizhzhia, as well as the head of a specialist military drone unit.
He is the former head of the Russian Space Agency and a former Putin deputy premier.
Last week, Rogozin crushed hopes of peace in the region when he appealed for new volunteers for his military unit.
He said: “The whole war is still ahead. We need motivated and well-trained volunteers in the profile of our combat activities.”
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Rozogin was not the only Putin official to make a comment on Prince William’s tank ride.
Russian military volunteer and political analyst Aleksei Zhivov said: “Britain’s heir to the throne, Prince William, popped over to Estonia to take a spin in a tank near the Russian border.”
He called it a “blunt message” from the British Royal Family to Russia.
Zhivov added: ”William also said he was there to show support for Estonia, which is ‘dangerously close to Russia. Well then, I suggest the Royal Family help move Estonia somewhere safer—Wales or Ireland, maybe?”
The Prince of Wales rode in a British Challenger 2 tank during a visit to Estonia supporting UK troops there
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He went on to say that Britain was only a 20 minute missile air ride away from Russia.
Vlad Shlepchenko, a military analyst for the ultranationalist Tsargrad TV, criticised the royal’s "visual message" to Russians, stating that "British soldiers and British tanks are already here, on the lands of the Russian Empire and the USSR."
Meanwhile, ex-Royal Navy Rear Admiral Chris Parry faced backlash from the Russians for his claims that one British nuclear submarine, armed with Trident missiles, could wipe out 40 Russian cities in a single strike.
He said it was “a lot of food for thought for Putin and that should make any world leader fearful".
One Russian war source said the statement missed a key element, which was Moscow’s counter-attack that would inevitably follow.
“The residence of the British Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street in London will be one of the first targets for a retaliatory nuclear strike,” the source added.
“If Britain decides to use nuclear weapons against Russia, then about a third of London will be wiped off the face of the Earth along with the residence of Prime Minister Keir Starmer.”
