Britain calls on Nato allies to flood Ukraine with weapons to fend off Russian invasion as Putin masses his war machine

BEN Wallace has launched a major diplomatic blitz to get wavering Nato allies to send lethal aid to Ukraine. The Defence Secretary will share intelligence on the extent of Russia’s war plans with Dutch and German counterparts and meet Nato Sec Gen Jens Stoltenberg amid signs of splits in the 30-nation alliance. EPABritish Defense Minister Ben Wallace arrives to meet Dutch Minister of Defence in The Hague[/caption] APMultiple naval ships have been deployed from Crimean ports[/caption] A top defence source said the plan was to “put some lead in their pencils”. It comes hours after Poland lashed out at Germany for refusing to give Warsaw permits to export “German origin weapons” to Ukraine. And RAF transport planes taking missiles to Ukraine were forced to take a 200 mile detour to avoid German airspace last week over fears Berlin could veto weapons overflights. The action fuels fears of a Nato split on how to respond to Moscow’s aggression. London and Berlin insisted there was no dispute between each other with German officials saying: “This was entirely a British decision.” C-17 cargo planes loaded with hi-tech anti-tank weapons took off from Brize Norton, Oxon, but flew over Denmark before heading for Kiev. Most read in The Sun 'ABSOLUTE TRAGEDY' Screams heard after boy, 5, 'stabbed' to death as woman, 49, arrested RULE CHANGE Everything you can and can't do as Covid rules change from MIDNIGHT ADELE OF A MESS Adele's wrecked God knows how many dream trips for fans, says Piers Morgan BIG BRO'S BACK Big Brother returns to UK TV four years after axe - but there's a twist BLOODY CHAOS Tributes to mum killed by ex as driver who run over knifeman praised as hero COL NEW WORLD Coleen Nolan's new man seen for first time on TV as fans say the same thing Under Nato rules, countries need permission to fly ammunition through another’s air-space. Russia meanwhile has deployed 20 warships and an estimated 1,000 elite paratroopers amid fears they could be used for a lightning strike on Kiev close to its border with Ukraine. Vladimir Putin has already massed 127,000 troops on its neighbour’s border amid warnings a Russian invasion could trigger World War Three. Putin deployed 20 warships to the Black Sea Fleet from the Crimean ports of Sevastopol and Novorossiysk for the second time in three days. Sources suggest their latest war games involved frigates, patrol ships, missile boats and landing ships as concerns grow that a potential offensive could take place on multiple fronts. “The crews of the ships will conduct a number of exercises and training sessions on the organisation of communications, safe manoeuvring in areas with heavy navigation, and the organisation of air defence at sea,” a Black Sea Fleet statement said. ELITE PARACHUTE REGIMENT Elsewhere, The Kremlin has been beefing up its force on the land border with Ukraine with the deployment of the crack 217th Guards Parachute Regiment of the 98th Airborne Division. The deployment was reported by independent Russian researchers known as the Conflict Intelligence Team (CIT). They pointed to a video showing tarpaulin-covered BMD-4M airborne combat vehicles and BTR-MDM airborne armoured personnel carriers. “This is the first confirmed video of paratroopers moving closer to the border with Ukraine,” said the Team.  “In any large-scale attack on the territory of Ukraine, the Airborne Forces should play a decisive role.” The CIT have since referenced reports that one Russian tactic could be a rapid advance on Ukraine, with the possible installation of a pro-Kremlin puppet government. “We consider an offensive from the territory of Belarus and/or the Bryansk region in the direction of the Ukrainian capital as at least one of the possible scenarios of Russian actions in Ukraine.” Multiple naval ships have been deployed from Crimean ports East2WestTarpaulin covered vehicles of Russia’s elite airborne forces[/caption] Russian airborne forces are seen on a previous training exerciseGetty - Contributor Russia staged drills with its lumbering Yars intercontinental nuclear ballistic missile transporters in Ivanovo region, as part of exercises by its strategic missile forces.  Elsewhere, in Rostov region, bordering Ukraine, the 150th Mechanised Infantry Division staged “combat readiness exercises” involving more than 1,000 troops.  It comes as Boris Johnson warned of Russian plans for a “lightning war” that could take out the Kiev amid reports its troops are already in Ukraine. The Prime Minister has pledged British troops will join Nato forces in Europe help defend Ukraine if Russia dares to invade. Other Members of the alliance – including Denmark, Spain, Bulgaria and the Netherlands – are sending more fighter jets and warships to Eastern Europe to bolster defences in the region. The US has also put 8,500 troops on alert to deploy at short notice, which Russia said caused it “great concern”. LIGHTNING STRIKE Isabel Sawkins, a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, thinks any potential conflict in Eastern Europe would not be confined to its borders. She told The Sun: “The crisis has the potential to extend its tentacles into all corners of the globe.” Analysts say Putin is now almost certain to launch a limited strike in the next ten days — which could include an attack on the three-million-strong population of the Ukrainian capital. The Kremlin strongman has 127,000 troops, tanks, artillery and missile batteries plus warjets and drones ringing the border with its pro-Western neighbour after peace talks failed. He is also ready to draft his favourite “war toys” into battle in Ukraine – including robot tanks, kamikaze stealth drones and paratrooper dogs. TROOPS MASSING He hopes a lightning victory will boost him back home after being dogged by a flagging economy and Covid woes. Military sources say another 30 trainloads of troops have poured into Ukraine’s pro-Putin neighbour Belarus in recent days – and 200 more could follow. The move – claimed to be for “military exercises” in Belarus – sparked alarm in Kiev, just 100 miles from the Belarusian border. The conflict could see the first combat use of remote-controlled tanks, and the first ever aerial dogfights between unmanned drones.