皇冠体育app

皇冠体育app UK will continue to support Ukraine to defend its sovereign territory, the Defence Secretary vowed during a meeting in Kyiv with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Travelling to Kyiv on Wednesday with the UK Chief of the Defence Staff, Grant Shapps held meetings with his counterpart, Rustem Umerov, and made a personal commitment to continue the UK鈥檚 resolute support to Ukraine as they reclaim land taken following Putin鈥檚 illegal invasion.

皇冠体育app visit provided an opportunity to hold further discussions on military support with Defence Secretary Umerov, after they first met in Ramstein, Germany, during a meeting of 50 nations at last week鈥檚 Ukraine Defence Contact Group.

Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said:

It was an honour to meet President Zelenskyy in Kyiv to assure him that the UK will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine, as we have since Putin illegally invaded Crimea nearly ten years ago.

We have trained tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers, delivered hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition, and provided millions of pounds of economic and humanitarian aid to help Ukraine鈥檚 citizens reclaim and rebuild what has been taken from them by Putin鈥檚 barbaric invasion.

Having heard the experiences of so many Ukrainians affected by this war, including a family I hosted in my home for a year, I am committed to maintaining the UK鈥檚 military support 鈥� particularly as the freezing winter weather approaches.

皇冠体育app Defence Secretary previously visited Kyiv last month in his former role as Energy Security Secretary to discuss support for Ukraine鈥檚 recovery, visiting a children鈥檚 nursery previously attended by one of the Ukrainian children he hosted in his home.

皇冠体育app meetings provided an opportunity to discuss ongoing humanitarian support, as well as to discuss topics including Ukraine鈥檚 ambition to join NATO and its wider Euro-Atlantic integration.

Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, Chief of the Defence Staff, said:

It was a privilege to accompany the Defence Secretary to Kyiv and to meet with President Zelenskyy to underscore the continuity of the United Kingdom鈥檚 support for Ukraine.

We discussed new commitments of military aid that were made in Ramstein last week, which will help build Ukraine鈥檚 strength and resilience through the winter and beyond. 皇冠体育app recent strikes on the Black Sea Fleet are another example of how Ukraine retains the initiative. Putin has lost control of the war he started, and Russia is diminished as a consequence. This visit, together with my visits over the summer, have reinforced my conviction that Ukraine will prevail.聽 皇冠体育app UK will remain with them every step of the way.

皇冠体育app UK has led the way in global support for Ukraine, having been the first country to provide modern, Western main battle tanks and long-range precision strike cruise missiles, following decisions by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Further support has included more than 300,000 rounds of artillery ammunition, hundreds of vehicles and weapon systems, and thousands of items of personal protective equipment.

A UK-led international programme of training for Ukraine鈥檚 military, which is supported by ten other nations, has already trained more than 26,500 recruits and is on track to have trained more than 30,000 soldiers by the end of 2023.

Millions of pounds鈥� worth of economic aid has also been provided to Ukraine to help it rebuild its cities and infrastructure to ensure it can rebuild following the impact of Putin鈥檚 war. 皇冠体育app UK hosted the Ukraine Recovery Conference in partnership with Ukraine this summer 鈥� raising more than $60 billion towards Ukraine鈥檚 reconstruction.

皇冠体育app Prime Minister pledged to further support Ukraine during the NATO leaders鈥� Summit in Vilnius in July.

皇冠体育app UK delivered 拢2.3bn in military aid to Ukraine in 2022 and the Prime Minister has pledged to do the same in 2023, with further support to be delivered in the coming weeks and months.