Ukraine has launched several Storm Shadow missiles at targets in Russia‘s Kursk region, the Express understands.

Images posted to Telegram purport to show fragments of the British-French-made missiles after explosions were reported in the village of Marine, Kursk, on Wednesday.

The state-of-the-art missiles are a nightmare for Putin’s forces and have already been used in high-level strikes inside Ukraine, including a huge strike at Russia‘s Black Sea HQ in Crimea.

Unconfirmed reports suggest the missiles were used to destroy a Russian command post in the area.

The news comes after the US gave the green light for Ukraine to use British Storm Shadow missiles to strike deep into Russian territory, it has been claimed.

Ukrainian media cited The Times, which reported that the turning point was the arrival of North Korean troops in Russia, according to a Foreign Office source.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is reportedly keen to allow Ukraine to begin using British weapons, which have a range of just over 155 miles.

During a press conference in Rio de Janeiro yesterday, the Prime Minister hinted that the decision was imminent.

He said: “I’ve been really clear for a long time now, we need to double down. We need to make sure Ukraine has what is necessary for as long as necessary, because we cannot allow Putin to win this war.

“But I’m not going to go into operational matters, because there’s only one winner if I do that, and that is Putin.”

Insiders have suggested that previous objections by the United States have been dropped, clearly the way for the missiles to be used.

The projectiles rely on GPS, meaning they could only be used with the agreement of Washington.

Addressing concerns about possible escalation, he added: “This is irresponsible rhetoric coming from Russia and that is not going to deter our support for Ukraine.

“We’re now on day 1,000 of a conflict, that’s 1,000 days of Russian aggression, 1,000 days of sacrifices in Ukraine.

“We have stood with Ukraine from the start. I’ve been doubling down in my clear message that we need to ensure Ukraine has what is needed for as long as needed to win this war against Putin.”

Also speaking yesterday, Lord Admiral West, a Labour peer, said: “I think the Americans and ourselves have made it a huge cause célèbre and it shouldn’t be.

“Way back when, these things should have been released without making a big deal.

They’ve made it become a very big issue and I think that’s unfortunate.”

One Downing Street source said Sir Keir had deliberately been careful in his language.

They explained: “There are very good operational reasons why we need to be cautious in what we say. The last thing we want to do is hand Putin a strategic advantage on the battlefield.”

Earlier this week Joe Biden gave Ukraine the green light to begin using ATACMS missiles inside Russian territory.

Enraged Russian President Vladimir Putin subsequently lowered the threshold for using his nuclear arsenal, with the new doctrine announced Tuesday permitting a potential nuclear response by Moscow even to a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power.

That could potentially include Ukrainian attacks backed by the US

Western leaders dismissed the Russian move as an attempt to deter Ukraine’s allies from providing further support to Kyiv, but the escalating tension weighed on stock markets after Ukraine used American-made ATACMS longer-range missiles for the first time to strike a target inside Russia.

Western and Ukrainian officials say Russia been stockpiling powerful long-range missiles, possibly in an upcoming effort to crush the Ukrainian power grid as winter settles in.

According to manufacturers MBDA, Storm Shadow is an “air-launched long range, conventionally armed, deep strike weapon” designed to meet the demanding requirements of pre-planned attacks against high value fixed or stationary targets.

The statement adds: “Able to be operated in extreme conditions, the weapon offers operators a highly flexible, deep-strike capability based around a sophisticated mission planning system.”

Storm Shadow has been put into operations with the Royal Air Force and the French Air Force in 2003 and was used in the Gulf, Iraq and Libya.

The weapon is now in service with three other nations giving unrivalled deep strike capability. Storm Shadow is operated from Tornado, Rafale, Mirage 2000 and in the future from Eurofighter Typhoon.