Rishi Sunak has urged European politicians to ‘stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes’ to combat Russia’s invasion.
The Prime Minister stated during the Council of Europe conference in Reykjavik, Iceland, that “the United Kingdom may have left the European Union, but we have not left Europe.”
He also stated that Russia must be held “accountable for the horrendous war crimes committed.”
Ukrainian air defences, bolstered by advanced Western-supplied systems, foiled a fierce Russian air strike on Kyiv early Tuesday, officials claimed, shooting down all missiles aimed at the city.
Speaking via video link at the start of the two-day summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said: ‘Today Ukraine lands through a difficult challenge. An intense Russian missile attack. Such challenges are what we all have to pay attention to now.
‘At 3 o’clock in the morning, our people woke up to explosions. 18 Russian missiles of different types were in our sky. In particular, ballistic ones which the terrorist state has boasted about.
‘We were told such missiles would bring a guaranteed death because they are supposedly impossible to shoot down. Russia used ballistics, cruise missiles, drones at the same time to make it especially difficult for our defence to save lives.
‘But all lives were protected. All missiles were shot down, including ballistic ones. 100 per cent. This is a historical result. Thank you all.’
According to Zelensky, ballistic missile and drone assaults on his country demonstrate that “Russia is working very hard to improve its ability to kill.”
As a result, he stated, Ukraine need “additional air defence systems and missiles.”
‘We also need more fighter jets, without which no air defence system will be perfect,’ he continued.
The remarks came a day after Zelensky visited Sunak at Chequers and Downing Street revealed that the UK will deploy air defence missiles and attack drones to war-torn Ukraine.