Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Russia and Iran “brothers in hatred” on Tuesday as he sought the support of UK Prime Minister Keir Stormer at a time when the Iran war sapped momentum from US-brokered talks to end Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
Zelenskyy urged Ukraine’s allies not to forget about his country and suggested the US and others use Ukraine’s anti-drone technology during the Middle East war, which has revived Russia’s ailing economy through increased oil revenues and could soon limit Kyiv’s access to key Western air defense systems needed in the Middle East.
“The regimes in Russia and Iran are brothers in hatred, and that is why they are brothers in arms,” Zelensky told lawmakers in Britain’s parliament. “And we want regimes built on hatred to never, ever win at anything.”
Speaking with Zelensky at 10 Downing Street, Stormer said, “(Russian President Vladimir) Putin cannot stand to benefit from a conflict in Iran from falling oil prices or sanctions.”
The meeting came days after the US temporarily waived some Russian oil sanctions in an effort to ease pressure on global supplies triggered by the war in the Middle East, triggered by joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran since February 28.
Zelensky and some other European leaders criticized Washington’s move to ease sanctions, saying it would give Moscow a windfall to continue its attacks on Ukraine.
Zelensky met King Charles III at Buckingham Palace before addressing dozens of members of the House of Commons and House of Lords in Parliament. He told them that other countries could learn from Ukraine’s adoption of agile, including drones and AI for defense.
“What we got through this winter, when Russia tried to make it lethal for all of our families, shows that our solutions work,” Zelensky said.
European leaders stress risks of Iran war for Ukraine
Zelenskyy said the London talks, which were attended by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Russia assesses energy security after winter hits Ukraine’s power grid and battlefield situation.
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In Brussels, the European Union’s chief diplomat Kaja Kallas noted on Tuesday that Russia would benefit from higher energy prices and the redeployment of advanced Western air defense systems from Ukraine to the Middle East.
But, he said, Ukraine “remains Europe’s top security priority, and Ukraine cannot be allowed to turn a blind eye.”
Alexander Stubb, the president of Finland, said the Iran war would be bad for Ukraine, “mainly because of oil prices that feed the Russian war machine. The Russian economy was actually doing very badly a couple of weeks ago. Now it’s bouncing back.”
Canadian Defense Minister David McGuinty and Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada headlined an event Tuesday at Rochelle’s Brampton, Ont., plant, which makes hundreds of armored vehicles bought by Ottawa for Ukraine’s armed forces.
Both officials stressed the importance of continuing to mobilize for Ukraine. In yet another sign of the shift in focus, every question from reporters focused on Iran, none on Ukraine or Russia.
Analysts say Ukraine has lost the Middle East conflict
US President Donald Trump has said he wants to secure a peace deal to end Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II and chided the continent’s leaders who believe Russia could pose a credible security threat to the European Union by the end of the decade.
But US-brokered talks between delegations from Moscow and Kyiv have stalled during the Middle East conflict, which has so far yielded no significant progress on key issues.
Ukraine is the “ultimate loser” from a war with Iran, said Ed Arnold, senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London. He said the war was draining America’s stockpile of air defense missiles, which are critical for Kyiv to shoot down Russian missiles, and diverting Washington’s attention from Russia-Ukraine talks.
Francois Heisberg, a special adviser at the Foundation for Strategic Research in Paris, said it was important for Ukraine to secure contracts with Gulf states for advanced air defense systems in exchange for Ukrainian anti-drone expertise and technology.
Trump rejects UK-Ukraine i drone deal
Ukraine is one of the world’s leading producers of high-tech, combat-tested drone interceptors.
Zelensky emphasized that Ukraine’s experience is an asset in the Middle East war. He said more than 200 Ukrainian military experts are in the region to share expertise in defeating Iranian drones, which are used in large numbers by Russia. Ukraine has developed cheap and effective ways to shoot them down, he said, pointing to an iPad-controlled defense system used by Ukraine’s military.
Trump rejected Zelensky’s offer to help the United States and its Persian Gulf partners fight Iranian drones.
British officials say Russia and Iran are cooperating on drone technology and tactics, and argue that Europe must also up its game when it comes to defense technology.
During Zelensky’s visit, the UK and Ukraine signed an agreement to combine “Ukraine’s expertise and the UK industrial base to manufacture and supply drones and innovative capabilities”. Britain is also funding an “AI Center of Excellence” in conjunction with the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence.
Frontline Ukraine counteroffensive, Kremlin calls resistance ‘futile’
Its air defense intercepted and destroyed 206 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian territories, the annexed Crimean Peninsula and the Sea of Azov, Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. A total of 40 intercepted drones were flying towards Moscow, the ministry said.
Asked about the increase in Ukrainian drone strikes in Moscow over the past few days, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said authorities in Kyiv were “continuing a completely futile resistance.”
Zelensky said late on Monday that counterattacks by Ukrainian forces at points east and south of the front line had wrecked Moscow’s plans for a March offensive.
His comments could not be independently verified, but the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said on Monday that the Ukrainian counterattacks would “constrain” some of Russia’s offensive operations.
Associated Press writers Ilya Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, and Emma Burrows in London contributed to this report.
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