Zelensky meets Starmer ahead of talks with allies to boost Ukraine’s defences

Sir Keir Starmer has met Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of a meeting of leaders at which he will urge allies to increase Ukraine’s supply of long-range weapons to strike back at Russia.

The Prime Minister welcomed the Ukrainian president to Downing Street on Friday ahead of talks on how to increase pressure on Moscow and boost Ukraine’s defences.

Measures under consideration will include further efforts to cripple the economy supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war effort by taking Russian oil and gas off the global market, and seeking ways to use frozen assets to fund Ukraine’s defences.

Mr Zelensky, Denmark’s prime minister Mette Frederiksen, Dutch premier Dick Schoof and Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte will be in London, while around 20 other leaders will dial in to a meeting of the “coalition of the willing” – the initiative led by Sir Keir and France’s Emmanuel Macron.

“Huge steps”

Sir Keir said “huge steps forward” have been taken this week to support Kyiv, but there is “further we can do” on long-range capability.

The Prime Minister said: “Whilst you have signalled the path for a way forward and shown that willingness of courage and determination, what we see from Putin is an absolute unwillingness to engage, in fact, the opposite, which is the continued attacks increasingly on civilians and on children, and sadly I have to offer you my condolences again, as I did the last time we met and the time before, for those terrible losses.

“I do think that this week we can really bear down on Russian oil and gas. Huge steps forward this week already.

“I think there’s further we can do on capability, particularly… long-range capability, and of course, the vital work for the coalition of the willing when it comes to the security guarantees that are necessary.