A US Air Force cargo plane has arrived at an airport on the outskirts of Moscow, flight tracking data shows, sparking speculation about a possible prisoner swap.
The Boeing C-17A Globemaster III, a military transport plane, arrived at Vnukovo International Airport, 17 miles southwest of the centre of the capital, on Tuesday morning.
The plane, with flight number RCH4555, departed the Latvian capital, Riga, just before 7am UK time and landed at Vnukovo slightly more than an hour later, around 10am Moscow time.
The four signs the UK’s stance towards Russia is escalating
Andy Burnham has faced down threats from the Kremlin over Britain’s increasing support for Ukraine by telling Vladimir Putin he “started the fire”.
Burnham says he won’t back down
The war of words broke out after Moscow warned that the UK sharing long-range missile blueprints with Kyiv would “add fuel to the fire” of the conflict.
During a visit to Kyiv on Monday, to mark the anniversary of Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union, Burnham insisted there would be no backing down from assistance to Kyiv.
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Tougher rhetoric from Burnham
While Sir Keir Starmer was a steadfast supporter of Ukraine, Burnham’s comments will be seen as more outspoken. They come as the perceived threat from Moscow has increased in the last few months.
With UK-made drones being used against Russia by Ukraine, Tobias Ellwood, a former defence minister, said Britain “should brace [itself] for grey zone retaliation. And for this we are woefully unprepared”.
Increased assistance
Britain has been contributing to Kyiv’s war effort since the start of the Russian invasion, but the revelation that UK-made drones were being used to strike Russia, as well as that Britain has shared blueprints for long-range missiles, reach a new scale of significance.
- Downing Street would not say whether this was a Starmer or Burnham policy, but a No 10 spokeswoman said the UK would continue to help arm Ukraine.
New battlefield data partnership
The latest support, announced on Monday evening, comes in the form of a new partnership between London and Kyiv on AI.
Under the deal, the UK will have access to Ukraine’s Avengers AI Labs database to develop tools for use on the battlefield.
Britain described the platform as a “goldmine of battlefield data”. In return, the UK will offer scientists and tech companies access to develop new battlefield tools.
Sorties by RAF planes
On Monday, an RAF “Rivet Joint” surveillance aircraft was spotted by military observers over Lithuania and northern Poland, near to the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.
While sorties such as these are not unusual, the timing of the mission – reported by the X account OSINT Defender – could suggest the UK is gearing up for potential retaliation from Moscow for its support for Ukraine.
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How much caffeine is in your favourite cup of high street coffee?
Coffees from high street chains can vary “wildly” in the amount of caffeine they contain, a new study by Which? has shown.
Costa tops caffeine leaderboards
The research found that a medium cappuccino from Costa contains 325mg of caffeine, almost three-and-a-half times that of the same drink at Starbucks, at 89mg.
This caffeine content is around the same amount as four cans of Red Bull. Costa also has the most caffeine in its espresso shots – 100mg per serving – and its flat whites (241mg).
Where the other chains stand
Greggs is second in the caffeine standings, with 235mg in its cappuccino and Caffe Nero third, with 221mg.
Starbucks serves the least amount of caffeine across all its drinks, but levels have increased in its espressos, cappuccinos and filter coffees over three years.
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The areas included in first wave of new housing fund
In an interview with The i Paper, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has said the Government is “tilting” towards council and social housebuilding in a bid to reduce the number of homeless families in expensive temporary accommodation.
A surge in social housing
A total of £10bn worth of funding is going to councils and housing associations to build more than 70,000 homes across England, 60 per cent of which must be social housing, according to Rayner.
- The £10bn announced yesterday is set to be followed by approximately £21bn for council and social housing, which has not yet been allocated.
The areas receiving the funds
Of the £10bn, the following mayoral authorities will receive:
- An additional 33 “strategic partners” that will receive the rest of the money will be announced in due course, the Government said.
- The Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, will be given £6bn to spend.
‘Changing order of queue’ will not solve social housing issue
Reform UK has pledged to prioritise British-born workers under 35 when allocating social housing if the party enters government, but charities and experts have warned that “changing the order of the queue” would not solve the issue of social housing.
Plug-in solar panels go on sale this week – what to know
Plug-in solar panel kits are set to go on sale in the UK this Thursday, just in time for the end of the sunny weather.
Here’s where you’ll be able to buy them later this week – and what to look out for.
What solar panel can I buy?
UKSOL is the first company to produce a plug-in solar panel meeting new regulations.
Its one-panel solar kit is on sale now from £699 for collection on 27 August.
It is not expected to hit supermarket shelves before the end of the summer, though.
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Will they get cheaper?
There had been speculation that a solar panel could cost as little as £400, and there is hope that prices could come down if plug-in solar becomes popular here.
Retailers such as Lidl, Asda, B&Q, Currys, Screwfix and Wickes have all expressed interest in solar kits.
How will they work?
- UKSOL’s single panel system includes a kit to set up the panel.
- It is then monitored via an app.
- It must be set up in a garden – not on a balcony.
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What to watch out for
Making your money back
With an estimated saving of £85 a year you’ll have to wait a while.
Safety first
Get your wiring checked to avoid starting fires from power surges.
No storage
You have to be in to use the electricity, or it will go to waste.
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Millions of women to get at-home cervical screening tests
From Tuesday, women who have not attended their cervical screening appointments will get free at-home testing kits on the NHS.
The move has been described as a “gamechanger”.
The NHS aims to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040.
Women can request kits online
Eligible women aged between 30 and 65 will be sent invitations to order an at-home swab kit if they have not attended a smear test.
The kits contain a swab, to be used to collect a sample from the vagina, which can then be posted to a lab for testing.
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How will it work?
- Samples will be tested for high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV).
- If a test is positive, the patient will be invited to an appointment.
- 13 types of HPV are responsible for 99.7% cervical cancers.
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More science from The i Paper
King Charles 10p coins enter circulation – but will you get one?
More than seven million coins bearing the King’s face are to enter circulation for the first time today, in response to rising demand for the 10p coin.
Fourth coin to bear Charles’s face
The new coins will join the 5p, 50p and £1 featuring the King’s portrait that are already in circulation. But these represent just 1 per cent of the 24,142 billion coins in use, so the new 10p will be rare.
The “tails” side will feature the capercaillie – an endangered bird found in the Highlands – reflecting the King’s passion for conservation.
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Capercaillie’s significance
We hope that by putting
Rebecca Morgan, director, Royal Mint
this extraordinary bird into millions of pockets and purses, we can spark a nationwide conversation about a species at real risk
of vanishing from Britain forever.”
Watch more from The i Paper
The plane departed from Camp Springs in Maryland, just outside Washington, DC, where Andrews Air Force Base is located, on Sunday evening and landed in Riga early the next morning, according to Flightradar24.
Donald Trump and other top US officials fly from Andrews Air Force Base. However, no reason has yet been given for the cargo plane’s arrival in Russia, and it is unknown who or what was on the plane.
The C-17 Globemaster III is a heavy military transport aircraft designed for transporting troops, military equipment and cargo over long distances. It can carry up to 77,519 kilograms of cargo, including the M1 Abrams main battle tank, armoured vehicles, trucks, helicopters and trailers.
The appearance of the US military aircraft in Moscow sparked speculation about another possible prisoner swap, after a US plane reportedly arrived in Russia as part of a US-Russia prisoner swap in February, when the American teacher Marc Fogel was released.
Robert Gilman, a former US Marine, was released on 11 August. Gilman, 32, was jailed in Russia in 2022 after his arrest for allegedly kicking a police officer, according to Russian state media. He was brought to the same base earlier this month before he was flown home to the US.
Russian media reported that a US military aircraft had landed at Vnukovo airport, but the Kremlin denied having any information about the Globemaster III. Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said there were no plans to hold meetings with representatives of the US administration this week.
There have been questions in recent weeks over further high-level diplomacy between Russia and the US after talks on ending the Ukraine war largely stalled.
The Kremlin said last week that there was no information yet on another visit to Moscow by US envoys Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and Steve Witkoff, a former property developer.
Russian media said at the weekend that a visit to Moscow by the two was being delayed. A source told the Tass news agency that a visit was unlikely to take place before the end of August.
Meanwhile, a visit to Kyiv by Kushner and Witkoff has been postponed once again. Neither has travelled to Kyiv since Trump handed them their top diplomatic roles. Neither attended Ukraine’s Independence Day celebrations on Monday.
However, Witkoff has travelled to Moscow eight times.
In contrast, Mike Pence, Trump’s former US vice president during his first term, and Keith Kellogg, the US President’s former special envoy for Ukraine, travelled to Kyiv for the Independence Day celebrations.
This story is being updated