British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke by telephone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and assured him that Ukraine could count on Britain’s support in the long term, according to Downing Street.
Sunak said that Britain had handed over 1,000 anti-aircraft missiles to the Ukrainian armed forces as a recent example of British assistance, according to a spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office in London.
The British prime minister also told Zelensky that work was already underway to prepare for the delivery of further equipment in the coming weeks and months. Sunak said that “British assistance is aimed at ensuring that Ukraine wins on the battlefield.”
Sunak was in Kyiv in the second half of November, where he met with Zelensky and announced that Britain would supply Ukraine with £50 million (€56.7 million) worth of air defense equipment.
Under the program, London will provide Ukraine with 125 anti-aircraft systems and technology that can be used against drones supplied by Iran to Russia, including dozens of radars and electronic warfare devices.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office in London, Britain provided £2.3 billion (€2.6 billion) in military aid to Ukraine in 2022, making it the second-largest military contributor to the Ukrainian armed forces after the United States.
