UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain’s “cast-iron support for Ukraine will always endure,” praising the resilience of the Ukrainian people and highlighting the UK’s role in building international coalitions to support Kyiv.
“Britain contribution work will continue, and our cast-iron support for Ukraine will always endure.
Not just for them and for European security, but for families in Britain who have felt the cost of this war through rising prices,” he said while affirming that UK will continue to play a central role in driving forward international support for Ukraine and European security.
Starmer traveled to Kyiv on Thursday during his final week in office, where he will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and reaffirm Britain’s long-term support for Ukraine,ahead of Andy Burnham’s installation as Labour leader and PM.
The visit marks the culmination of two years of Starmer’s leadership in backing Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion. During talks with Zelenskyy, Starmer is set to discuss military support, security partnerships and efforts to secure a lasting peace.
In comments ahead of his trip, Sir Keir said the “fortitude” of the Ukrainian people since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 had “preserved the security of Europe”.”
“When I became Prime Minister, I knew the UK must not simply stand with Ukraine in the moment, but help build the foundations of its long-term security and success. That’s why we put the UK at the centre of a stronger Europe – investing more money into defence, leading the way in the war fighting technologies of the future and doing everything we can to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position,” he said.
“And we have brought others with us on that journey. As we showed at the G7 and NATO Summits in recent weeks: the UK and its allies are absolutely united against Russian aggression,” he added.
Under Starmer’s government, the UK pledged £3 billion annually in military assistance to Ukraine, delivered hundreds of thousands of drones, missiles and artillery rounds, and helped establish the Coalition of the Willing — a group of nations supporting Ukraine’s security needs.
The UK also signed a 100-year partnership with Ukraine covering defence, security, trade, energy, science and culture, while imposing sanctions on Russian individuals, entities and vessels linked to the war effort.
The visit comes after Starmer attended a Coalition of the Willing meeting in Paris, where he announced a UK agreement to join a £78 billion Ukraine Support Loan initiative aimed at strengthening Kyiv’s defence capabilities and creating opportunities for British defence companies.
Starmer said that although his time as prime minister is ending, the UK’s commitment to Ukraine will continue through the partnerships and alliances established during his tenure.
UK squeezed Russia’s invasion funds with sanctions on over 1,400 individuals, entities and ships including around 600 shadow fleet oil tankers operating as part of the Russian shadow fleet.
He has been the first G7 country to sanction all four Russian oil majors (Rosneft, Lukoil, Gazprom Neft, and Surgutneftegaz), responsible for roughly 80% of Russia’s oil production.
