UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Visits President Zelensky In Kyiv As He Pledges £50m In Aid

 

BBC: Ukraine war: Rishi Sunak visits President Zelensky in Kyiv as he pledges £50m in aid 

Rishi Sunak has pledged £50m in defence aid to Ukraine as he met President Volodymyr Zelensky in his first visit to Kyiv since becoming prime minister. 

Mr Sunak said it was "deeply humbling" to be in Kyiv and that the UK would continue to stand by Ukraine. "Since the first days of the war, Ukraine and the UK have been the strongest of allies," Mr Zelensky said following the meeting. 

The aid package is intended to counter Russian aerial attacks.

The £50m defence aid comprises 125 anti-aircraft guns and technology to counter deadly Iranian-supplied drones, including dozens of radars and anti-drone electronic warfare capability. 

Mr Sunak also announced the UK will increase the training offer to Ukraine's armed forces, sending expert army medics and engineers to the region to offer specialised support. 

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WNU Editor: This £50m in aid is a joke. This money is just a drop in the bucket on what Ukraine needs. 

In the meantime the UK economy is in a deep recession .... Worst fall in UK living standards since records began, says OBR (The Guardian). More here .... UK finance minister announces tax hikes and spending cuts, says country is in recession (CNBC).

 UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Visits President Zelensky In Kyiv As He Pledges £50m In Aid 

New UK PM Sunak visits Kyiv, pledges support -- Reuters  

UK PM Sunak makes surprise trip to Kyiv, boosts defense aid -- AP  

Rishi Sunak meets Volodymyr Zelenskiy in surprise visit to Ukraine -- The Guardian  

UK PM Rishi Sunak meets President Zelenskyy on surprise Ukraine trip -- Euronews 

Rishi Sunak in Ukraine to discuss 'global security' with Volodymyr Zelenskyy -- SKY News

UK To Provide A Further £1.3bn Military Package To Ukraine

Boris Johnson said the aid would ensure Ukraine ‘can continue to push back the Russian invasion and survive as a free and democratic country’. Photograph: Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Reuters  

Reuters: UK to provide 1.3 billion pounds of further military support to Ukraine 

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain said it would provide a further 1.3 billion pounds ($1.60 billion) in military support and aid to Ukraine, making the pledge ahead of a planned video call on Sunday by Group of Seven leaders with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. 

Prime Minister Johnson has been one of the strongest supporters of Ukraine's efforts to resist Russian forces since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion on Feb. 24. Johnson's government has sent anti-tank missiles, air defence systems and other weapons to Ukraine.  

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WNU Editor: This funding includes 300 million pounds in military gear, including radar systems, GPS jamming equipment and night vision devices. But what caught my attention is that this $1.6 billion will be coming from the UK's emergency fund, a fund that should only be spent if there is an emergency in the UK?!?!?!? 

UK To Provide A Further £1.3bn Military Package To Ukraine  

UK poised to hand further £1.3bn military package to Ukraine -- The Guardian  

UK pledges fresh military aid for Ukraine ahead of G7 talks -- Politico.eu  

UK to allocate additional $1.6 billion funding in aid to Ukraine: Reports -- Business Standard  

UK pledges more aid to Ukraine as Europe marks V-E Day -- FOX News 

UK to supply $1.6B in military aide to Ukraine as Europe marks WWII anniversary -- NYPost

Are SAS Forces In Ukraine?

Boris Johnson meets Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv (Boris Johnson/Twitter/PA)  

Daily Mail: Putin hunts SAS in Ukraine: Russia launches formal probe into whether British elite troops 'specialising in sabotage and guerrilla warfare' are on the ground in Lviv 

* Russia's Vladimir Putin is searching for at least two SAS squads he believes may have been deployed to Lviv 

* Moscow State Media claimed in reports the British special forces work in war zones undercover as medics 

* Warring Putin's investigation is reported to be based on some allegations made by captured Kyiv soldiers 

Warring Russian President Vladimir Putin has today launched a search for British SAS forces alleged to be fighting in western Ukraine. 

The Kremlin's Investigative Committee (IC), often referred to as Putin's personal CIA, said Saturday it will look into 'the facts of the activities of British SAS saboteurs in Ukrainian regions,' in particular Lviv, according to state-controlled outlet RIA Novosti. 

It comes as Kremlin-backed soldiers encircle the last remaining defenders of Mariupol to the east, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky vowing to pull out of peace talks with Russia if any of his soldiers are killed in the last stand in the strategic port city.  

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WNU Editor: Claims that SAS forces are in Ukraine can be read here .... UK Providing War Zone Training to Ukrainian Soldiers (Defense Post). The Russian report is here .... Russia to investigate alleged SAS activities in Ukraine (RT). 

More News On Reports That SAS Forces Are In Ukraine  

Russia Investigates Media Report on Presence of British SAS Special Forces in Ukraine -- Reuters  

Ukraine war: Russia investigating reports of SAS 'sabotage' in western Lviv region -- SKY News  

Ukrainian troops are being trained in the UK to use the armored vehicles donated to the country, says Boris Johnson -- Business Insider  

Russia investigates report of British SAS forces in Ukraine -- Al Jazeera  

Britain reveals Ukrainian soldiers are training locally -- Defense News

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson Meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy In Kyiv

 

Politico: UK’s Boris Johnson meets Zelenskyy in Kyiv, promises more military, financial aid  

UK will present ‘a new package of financial and military aid,’ Downing Street says. 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. The visit was first made public by the Embassy of Ukraine to the U.K., which tweeted a photo of the two. A No. 10 spokesperson later confirmed the trip. 

“The Prime Minister has travelled to Ukraine to meet President Zelenskyy in person, in a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people,” the spokesperson said. 

Johnson later tweeted: “We’re setting out a new package of financial & military aid which is a testament of our commitment to his country’s struggle against Russia’s barbaric campaign.”  

Read more .... 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson Meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy In Kyiv  

Boris Johnson pledges to send more arms during surprise visit to Kyiv -- The Guardian  

Ukraine: Johnson pledges aid to Zelensky in Kyiv meeting -- BBC  

Zelenskiy meets leaders, braces for 'hard battle' -- Reuters  

British PM Praises Zelenskiy, Ukraine's Defenders During Surprise Visit To Kyiv -- RFE  

Ukraine war: Boris Johnson meets Volodymyr Zelesnkyy in Kyiv to offer more military and financial aid -- SKY News  

Boris Johnson meets Volodymyr Zelenskyy in surprise Kyiv visit, pledges more munitions and economic support for Ukraine -- ABC News Australia  

UK pledges new military assistance for Ukraine after PM’s surprise visit to Kyiv -- CNN  

Boris Johnson makes secret trip to Kyiv to show ‘unwavering support’ -- NYPost  

Boris Johnson promises more weapons during surprise Ukraine visit -- RT

Why Are American And British Leaders More Worried Than Ukrainian Leaders Of Russia Invading Ukraine?

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as they look at historical documents and artefacts relating to the Atlantic Charter during their meeting, at Carbis Bay Hotel, Carbis Bay, Cornwall, Britain June 10, 2021. REUTERS/Toby Melville/Pool  

Joe Lauria, Consortium News: A War Only America & Britain Seem to Want 

Disagreement between the U.S. and Ukrainian presidents and cautiousness by Germany and France, seems to indicate only the U.S. and U.K. are keen for war with Russia, reports Joe Lauria. 

The telephone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday was said to have not “gone well,” according to a senior Ukrainian official. 

The official said Zelensky urged Biden to “calm down the messaging” on the situation in Ukraine and that Ukrainian intelligence did not see a Russian threat the same way the U.S. did, according to a report on CNN. It is “dangerous but ambiguous,” the official quoted Zelensky as telling Biden, and that “it is not certain that an attack will take place.” 

At a news conference on Friday, Zelensky said: “They keep supporting this theme, this topic.And they make it as acute and burning as possible. In my opinion, this is a mistake.” He added: “If you look only at the satellites you will see the increase in troops and you can’t assess whether this is just a threat of attack or just a simple rotation.”  

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WNU Editor: Ukrainian citizens and their leaders are worried about the war in the eastern part of the country and the possibility of a Russian incursion/invasion. This has been the constant state of affairs since 2014. 

What is new is the recent level of concern from certain governments in the West, the rhetoric of their leaders, and the news media that covers them. 

So we now have this disconnect where President Biden and UK PM Johnson are predicting a Russian invasion soon, and Ukrainian President Zelensky saying "not really" 

So who is right? 

Zelensky's political weakness is the economy, and talk of war tends to kill economic activity. 

President Biden and UK PM Johnson need a diversion from their own domestic problems. The threat of war is a good way to change the narrative.

Russian President Putin also needs a change in his narrative as Covid and economic problems continue in his country. 

My money is on Zelensky.

U.K. To Send Soldiers And Equipment To Ukraine

BBC: Ukraine army to be trained by UK troops - Cameron

British military personnel are to be sent to Ukraine in the next few weeks to provide advice and training, says Prime Minister David Cameron.

As he spoke, pro-Russian rebels said they were pulling back heavy weapons from the front line in eastern Ukraine as part of a ceasefire.

However, the government in Kiev has disputed the rebel claims.

Mr Cameron said he would push for more sanctions on Russia if the separatists failed to observe the truce.

The prime minister told a House of Commons committee that up to 75 British soldiers divided into four teams would go to an area well away from the conflict zone to provide medical, logistics, intelligence and infantry skills.

More News On The U.K. Sending Soldiers And Equipment To Ukraine

Cameron says UK to send military advisers to Ukraine: Politics Live blog -- The Guardian
British troops to be sent to Ukraine as Cameron warns against appeasing Putin like Hitler -- Daily Mail
Britain to send military advisers to Ukraine, announces Cameron -- The Guardian
UK military training in Ukraine: symbolic move that risks Russian ire -- The Guardian
British forces head for Ukraine as David Cameron issues warning to Vladimir Putin -- The Telegraph
UK stuns Europe by sending troops to Ukraine -- Kyiv Post
Cameron commits troops & ‘non-lethal aid’ to Ukraine -- RT
UK to Send Military Personnel to Ukraine -- Sputnik