LONDON (dpa-AFX) – Britain is once again significantly expanding its military support for Ukraine. A new package includes hundreds of anti-aircraft missiles and hundreds of combat drones with a range of more than 200 kilometers, the government in London announced on Monday during a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This would allow the unmanned missiles to reach targets on the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed by Russia. Britain had previously provided longer-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles.
The British government announced that Selenskyj had arrived in Great Britain on Monday. He will meet Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at his country estate, Checkers, northwest of London.
“This material will assist Ukraine in its expected military push against Russian forces over the coming months,” the UK government said of the latest pledges. Britain is one of Ukraine’s biggest supporters.
“This is a crucial moment in Ukraine’s resistance to a terrible war of aggression, which it neither chose nor provoked,” Sunak said, according to the statement. “She needs the sustained support of the international community to defend herself against the barrage of relentless and indiscriminate attacks that have been her daily reality for more than a year.”
It is in the interest of the whole world that Ukraine succeeds and that “Putin’s barbarism” is not rewarded, Sunak said, referring to the Russian president Wladimir Putin. “That’s why the UK continues to support Ukraine – from tanks to training and ammunition to armored vehicles.”
Ahead of his arrival in the UK, the Ukrainian President held talks in Rome, Berlin and Paris over the weekend. Shortly before Selenskyj’s visit, the federal government had promised Ukraine further arms deliveries worth 2.7 billion euros./bvi/DP/mis