Kremlin Declines to Comment on US Suggestion That Russia May Get Ballistic Missiles from Iran

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia November 21, 2023. (Sputnik/Kremlin via Reuters)
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia November 21, 2023. (Sputnik/Kremlin via Reuters)
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Kremlin Declines to Comment on US Suggestion That Russia May Get Ballistic Missiles from Iran

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia November 21, 2023. (Sputnik/Kremlin via Reuters)
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia November 21, 2023. (Sputnik/Kremlin via Reuters)

The Kremlin declined on Wednesday to comment on a suggestion by White House spokesman John Kirby that Iran may be considering providing Russia with ballistic missiles for use in Ukraine.

"We are developing relations with Iran, including in the field of military-technical cooperation, but we do not comment on this information," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in a regular news briefing.

Kirby said the United States would monitor the situation between Iran and Russia, and take appropriate action as needed.



UK to Use Police Stations as Prisons under Emergency Measure

Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
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UK to Use Police Stations as Prisons under Emergency Measure

Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police officers are seen in London, Britain, November 27, 2024. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy

Police cells will temporarily be used to hold prisoners in a stop-gap measure to cope with overcrowding in jails, the British government said on Tuesday.

The emergency action, dubbed "Operation Safeguard", allows inmates to be held in police cells when prisons are full, and was previously used from February 2023 to October last year, Reuters said.

The prison population in England and Wales has doubled in the last 30 years, according to official data, leading to overcrowding as new places have failed to keep pace with demand. Justice systems in Scotland and Northern Ireland are run separately.

In a statement to parliament, Shabana Mahmood said the prison system was operating at more than 99% occupancy.

January saw the highest average monthly prison population growth in almost two years, as part of a rising trend in the last three months that "has only just begun to slow", she added.

"Given the recent increase in demand, it is necessary, and prudent, for me to temporarily reactivate Operation Safeguard to better manage the flow of offenders into the prison estate," Mahmood said.

According to the World Prison Brief database, imprisonment rates in England and Wales are higher than in other major European countries, with 141 detainees per 100,000 population, against 120 in France, 117 in Spain, 105 in Italy and 68 in Germany.