12 January 2024 •

Abandoning Ukraine will only embolden Vladimir Putin’s allies such as Iran and North Korea, Rishi Sunak warned on Friday.

Arriving for a surprise visit to Kyiv, the Prime Minister announced Britain’s military funding to Ukraine would be increased to £2.5 billion and signed a new security pact, the first step in a “100-year partnership”.

“Our actions right now will determine the future path of the war,” Mr Sunak said, at a time when support packages from Washington and Brussels are snarled up in political bickering.

“If Putin wins in Ukraine, he will not stop there. And our opponents around the world believe that we have neither the patience nor resources for long wars. So waver now, and we embolden not just Putin but his allies in North Korea, Iran and elsewhere.”

The military support promised by Britain is its largest annual package of artillery ammunition, air defence missiles and military training.

It includes an extra £200 million worth of drones, most of which will be manufactured in the UK, to support Volodymyr Zelensky’s drive to procure one million extra UAVs this year.

‘Swift and sustained’

While in Ukraine, Mr Sunak signed off on a 10-year security package for the war-torn nations, becoming the first G7 leader to deliver on the deals promised at a Nato summit last year.

The 16-page document promises a “swift and sustained” response if Russia attacks again in the future.

It also pledges Britain’s future role in using its expertise to develop Kyiv’s navy after a series of successes in pushing Russia’s fleet out of the Black Sea, a move first reported by the Telegraph last month.

It read: “The UK will jointly lead the Maritime Security Capability Coalition and will make significant contributions to Ukraine’s maritime fleet development.”

Britain hopes that the promise will transform Ukraine into a “net contributor” to security in both the Black Sea and Sea of Azov by the end of the 10-year deal.

It will also further formalise intelligence sharing, cyber security, military training and defence-industrial co-operation.

Mr Zelensky praised Mr Sunak for his “personal leadership” in supporting the war-torn nation’s armed struggle against the Russian invasion, awarding the Prime Minister with the Ukrainian Order of Freedom.

Volodymyr Zelensky awarded the Prime Minister with the Ukrainian Order of Freedom CREDIT: Efrem Lukatsky/AP

The Ukrainian president added: “Today marks a watershed moment in European history. Ukraine and the United Kingdom signed a new, unprecedented security agreement.

“This is not simply a declaration. This is a reality that will come to fruition as a result of our cooperation, including security commitments from a major global power, the United Kingdom.”

More than 30 nations are seeking to replicate Britain’s long-term promise to support Kyiv in the wake of it not being offered Nato membership last summer and access to the alliance’s iron-clad mutual defence clause – Article 5.

The announcement was designed to maintain pressure on both the US and European Union to continue providing aid for Ukraine.

Focus minds in Washington

Joe Biden, the US president, was said to be watching closely as he works to secure backing from Congress for a $61 billion (£47.8 billion) support package, which is being blocked by Republican lawmakers.

He hopes the signing of the UK-Ukraine will focus minds in Washington, sources from his administration said.

The EU is also working to find secure backing for its own €50 billion (£52.4 billion) aid package for Kyiv, which was blocked by Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister, at a summit in Brussels last month.

On his one-day visit to Kyiv, the Prime Minister visited an apartment block that was recently hit by debris in a Russian missile attack on the capital, meeting emergency workers who hauled survivors out of the rubble. Three people were killed, 50 hospitalised and 400 made homeless in the strike.

He also joined Mr Zelensky at a military hospital in the capital to award Order of Courage medals to soldiers injured on the front lines.

Downing Street will hope the visit cements Britain’s position as one of Ukraine’s most ardent backers, having donated £2.3 billion in military support in the first two years of conflict.

Mr Sunak was also the first world leader to sign off on shipments of modern main battle tanks and long-range missiles.

But the UK has slipped down to Europe’s second-largest backer for Kyiv, with Germany promising to deliver €8 billion in weaponry this year.

Zelensky presents Sunak with order of Ukraine

Volodymyr Zelensky has awarded Rishi Sunak with the state order of Ukraine as he thanked his “dear friend” for supporting Ukraine.

He said: “I’d like to thank the whole of the UK all of its citizens all of its people, I’d like to thank everyone who believed that life and justice have to prevail.

“The UK really ranks first, for it has ranked first throughout history in many respects… I’d like to present the state order of Ukraine, the order of freedom, I’d like to present it to Rishi, my dear friend.

2:27PM

‘Today the history of Europe changed’

Ukraine’s independence from Russia would have been guaranteed if countries had brought in security agreements earlier, Volodymyr Zelensky has said.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Rishi Sunak, the Ukrainian President said: “Today the history of Europe changed and Ukraine and the UK have entered into a new unprecedented security agreement.

“This is a reality that will come to life thanks to our cooperation, thanks to security guarantees from a prominent global force: Great Britain.

“If this level of guarantees would be guaranteed after 1991 with the UK and the other countries there would not be Russian aggression.

Addressing Mr Sunak directly, he added: “Rishi, dear prime minister, thank you for your personal leadership… we reached a new level of relations between our countries.”

2:07PM

British support is ‘unprecedented’, says Zelensky

Volodymyr Zelensky has described the security agreement announced by Rishi Sunak as “unprecedented” and says it will continue until Ukraine joins Nato.

The pact sets out the intelligence sharing, cyber security, medical and military training that Britain will provide for Ukraine, along with a pledge to lend “swift” support in the event of another Russian invasion.

1:37PM

Ukraine: Russian attacks on Dnipro River bridgehead fading

Russian assaults on the left bank of the Dnipro River are dropping in intensity while Ukraine targets enemy artillery, according to reports.

A spokeswoman for Ukraine’s southern defence forces said three enemy assaults were recorded yesterday, compared to 10-12 attempts previously.

Kyiv established a bridgehead on the left bank in November. Britain’s defence ministry has suggested Moscow was forced to cancel planned offensives after losing fighter jets that left it without air support.

Medvedev lashes out at ‘the arrogant British’

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has hit out at Britain, “our eternal enemies”, after Rishi Sunak announced a multi-billion-pound support package for Kyiv.

He wrote on Telegram: “How would the Western public react to the fact that the British delegation came under fire from cluster munitions in the centre of Kyiv, as happened to the civilians of our Belgorod.

“And one more thing: I hope that our eternal enemies, the arrogant British, understand that the deployment of their official military contingent in Ukraine will mean a declaration of war on our country”.