Boris Johnson travels to talks with Ukrainian President as hostilities with Russia intensify

The prime minister will travel to Ukraine today for talks with President Zelenskyy as tensions on the country’s border with Russia continue to rise.

Over 100,000 Russian troops are currently amassed on Ukraine’s doorstep and President Putin has made repeated demands to restrict Ukraine’s right to pursue NATO membership and self-defence.

British Armed Forces have trained over 22,000 Ukrainian troops to defend themselves since 2015. The prime minister’s discussions with President Zelenskyy today will cover the full range of strategic UK support to Ukraine.

The UK government says that £88 million of new funding announced today, including from the UK’s Good Governance Fund, will bolster anti-corruption work and aid efforts to reduce Ukraine’s reliance on Russian energy supplies.

The prime minister has stressed, including directly to President Putin, the UK’s enduring and unwavering support for Ukrainian sovereignty. Further Russian incursion would have a stark humanitarian cost and the UK continues to encourage Russia to engage fully in discussions with NATO.

Prime minister Boris Johnson said: “It is the right of every Ukrainian to determine how they are governed. As a friend and a democratic partner, the UK will continue to uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty in the face of those who seek to destroy it.

“We urge Russia to step back and engage in dialogue to find a diplomatic resolution and avoid further bloodshed.”

IN October 2020 president Zelenskyy visited Downing Street where it was agreed that the bilateral relationship between the UK and Ukraine in areas including defence, trade and political cooperation would be intensified. As part of this meeting they launched an ongoing Strategic Dialogue which this visit continues.

Both countries’ leaders last spoke on 13th January when they agreed to continue to work closely alongside international partners to “deter Russian aggression”.

On Monday the Foreign Secretary announced an upscale to the UK’s sanctions regime which will give the UK the power to target any company that is linked to the Russian state, engages in business of economic significance to the Russian state, or operates in a sector of strategic significance to the Russian state.

Following instruction by the prime minister, the UK is in discussions with NATO about what support can be offered to support NATO’s Eastern Flank.