UK Prime Minister Keir Stormer told Volodymyr Zelensky in London on Tuesday that “the focus must remain on Ukraine” despite the US-Israeli war with Iran, as the Ukrainian president made his latest stop on a tour of European capitals.
Stormer welcomed Zelensky to his official Downing Street residence after a visit to Paris last week and ahead of a trip to Madrid on Wednesday.
The visits come as the Middle East conflict overshadows Ukraine’s four-year struggle against Russian aggression.
The United States is pressing Kyiv and Moscow to agree to an elusive peace deal, but a third round of three-party talks has been derailed by the Iran war and no new date has been set for the talks.
Washington has lifted sanctions against Moscow in part to cool oil prices that have been soaring since the Middle East war.
“I think it’s really important that we make it clear that the focus is on Ukraine,” Starmer said.
“There’s obviously a conflict going on in the Middle East in Iran, but we can’t lose focus on what’s going on in Ukraine and the need for our support,” he said.
Zelensky and Starmer signed a defense partnership aimed at boosting Ukraine’s anti-drone expertise during the visit.
Since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran late last month, Tehran has mainly used ballistic missiles to attack Israel, but it has also relied on drones to strike targets in the Gulf states.
The UK-Ukraine deal will “enhance the global defense capability against the proliferation of low-cost, high-tech military hardware, including drones,” Stormer’s Downing Street office said in a statement before the signing.
The deal seeks to use Ukraine’s “expertise” to defend drones from a war with Russia, as well as Britain’s industrial base to “manufacture and supply drones and innovative capabilities”.
It will fund 500,000 pounds ($670,000) for an “AI Center of Excellence” to be integrated into the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.
‘Unwavering Support’
Addressing the UK Parliament, Zelenskiy told MPs that 201 Ukrainian anti-drone military experts have helped defend territory in the Middle East against Iran-designed Shahed drones, which have been used by Russia in its war against Kyiv.
Ukrainian teams are already in UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia and are on their way to Kuwait, he said. Another 34 experts are “ready for deployment,” he said.
“We don’t want this terrorism of the Iranian regime against its neighbors to succeed,” Zelensky said in a 30-minute speech, boasting of Kyiv’s anti-drone expertise during its four-year-long war with Russia.
Zelensky’s visit to London comes as his European allies vowed to maintain support for Kyiv in its conflict with Russia.
“Our resolve is unbreakable,” Starmer said, reiterating the UK’s long-standing support for Ukraine.
Earlier, Zelensky and King Charles shook hands during a private audience at Buckingham Palace.
“I thank His Majesty and the entire royal family for their unwavering support and solidarity with Ukraine,” Zelensky wrote in X.
The Ukrainian leader will later meet NATO chief Mark Rutte in London, his spokesman said.
(With FRANCE 24 AFP)
(tags to translate)Europe
