UK commits £100m to bolster Ukraine’s air defences over winter | Foreign policy

The UK has committed £100m to boost Ukraine’s air defences over winter with a package of military equipment including Patriot missiles.

Defence interceptors, large-calibre artillery rounds and drones will be supplied to Ukraine through the contribution to Nato’s prioritised Ukraine requirements list.

The package will also include Patriot missiles, used to stop aircraft, cruise missiles, and tactical ballistic missiles. Supplies of the crucial defence system have dwindled with significant consequences. Military experts have said the lack of Patriot missiles was behind a drop in interceptions of Russian attacks.

The UK defence secretary, Wes Streeting, is due to co-chair his first meeting of the Ukraine defence contact group, made up of about 50 nations providing military kit to Kyiv, with his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius, on Tuesday.

The UK recently agreed to declassify blueprints for British-made components for the Scalp missile, a French-produced version of the Storm Shadow, which has already been used to hit targets in Russia.

Streeting said: “Both the prime minister and I heard loud and clear on our first visits to Kyiv the importance of supporting Ukraine through this winter, as Putin prepares to use winter as a weapon by continuing barbaric attacks against civilian and energy targets.

“We promised to mobilise allies and provide more support wherever we can. Today, we are delivering on that, strengthening Ukraine’s defences and, alongside 50 allies, converting commitment into capability.

“We will stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine until they win. Ukraine’s frontline is the frontline for freedom everywhere and our support will not waver.”

The UK prime minister, Andy Burnham, spoke to the US president, Donald Trump, about the Ukraine war on Monday, with the two agreeing on the need to “continue working towards a ceasefire that prevented more loss of life”.

US envoys held talks in Kyiv on Sunday during an official visit to the country as part of an effort to end the conflict with Russia. While the talks were described as encouraging, no breakthrough was made. The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said it appeared the war would continue into winter.