Zelenskyy arrives in London for talks with allies on military aid

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reached London on Friday to hold talks with over 20 European leaders, who have pledged military help to protect his country from future Russian aggression if a ceasefire stops the more than three-year war.

The meeting hosted by British PM Keir Starmer is also due to discuss ways of helping protect Ukraine’s power grid from Russia’s almost daily drone and missile attacks as winter approaches, enhancing Ukrainian air defences, and supplying Kyiv with longer-range missiles that can strike deep inside Russia.

The talks aim to step up pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding momentum to measures in recent days that have included a new round of sanctions from the United States and European countries that take aim at Russia’s vital oil and gas export earnings. Putin has so far resisted efforts to push him into negotiating a peace settlement with Zelenskyy and has argued that the motives for Russia’s all-out invasion of its smaller neighbour are legitimate. Russia has also been adept at finding loopholes in Western sanctions. That unbending stance has exasperated Western leaders.

Zelenskyy and Starmer are expected to be joined at the Foreign Office in London by NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte, Danish PM Mette Frederiksen and Dutch PM Dick Schoof. Nearly 20 other leaders are to join via video link in the meeting of the group dubbed the Coalition of the Willing.