WESTERN officials have warned that Russia could release more clips from calls with UK Government ministers, after the defence and home secretaries were targeted. 

A video was posted online today of a call between Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, and someone pretending to be the Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

Downing Street has pointed the finger at Russia for the fake call, which took place last week.

Mr Wallace said he terminated it as he became suspicious. 

Officials have said the purpose is to drive a wedge between western allies and also embarass the UK Government, warning that there will probably be further similar videos to come. 

Priti Patel and Mr Wallace both confirmed they had been victims of the prank calls last week, with an investigation now ongoing. 

Asked by The Herald about the purpose of the calls, Western officials said the "primary objective is to embarrass and sow division."

They said that the Kremlin have used similar tactics in the past and added: "We would expect the information to be leaked out over time".

They also warned that it could be distorted in some way to "increase the impact" and explained that the timing of any further releases would be done to maximise its potential impact. 

They explained they "wouldn't be at all surprised to find that the next installment is released during the NATO Summit" on Thurday, with content released with the aim of "driving a wedge between allies".

The officials said that while the main purpose of hoax calls was to humiliate the recipient, any intelligence gleaned from the calls would be seen as a "bonus".