UK PM Rishi Sunak meets President Zelenskyy on surprise Ukraine trip
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised 125 anti-aircraft guns and other air-defense technology as he made an unannounced visit Saturday -- his first -- to Ukraine's snow-blanketed war-time capital for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The air-defense package, which Britain valued at £50 million (€47 million), comes as Russia has been pounding Ukraine's power grid and other key infrastructure from the air, causing widespread blackouts for millions of Ukrainians as the frigid cold of winter draws near.
The package includes radar and other technology to counter Iran-supplied exploding drones that Russia has used against Ukrainian targets. It comes on top of a delivery of more than 1,000 anti-air missiles that Britain announced earlier this month.
The UK has been one of the staunchest Western supporters of Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s invasion, giving Kyiv £2.3 billion (€2.6 billion) in military aid.
Zelenskyy described the two countries as “the strongest of allies.”
“With friends like you by our side, we are confident in our victory. Both of our nations know what it means to stand up for freedom,” the Ukrainian leader said on Twitter.
“The courage of the Ukrainian people is an inspiration to the world,” Sunak said in comments alongside Zelenskyy in the presidential palace. “In years to come we will tell our grandchildren of your story.”
He pledged that Britain “will stand with you until Ukraine has won the peace and security it needs and deserves and then we will stand with you as you rebuild your great country.”
Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who stepped down in July amid a welter of ethics scandals, won wide praise in Ukraine for his backing.
Sunak is keen to reassure Ukraine’s leaders that
Read more on euronews.com
