Zelenskyy tells U.K. ‘freedom will win’ as he pushes for warplanes
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pushed for fighter jets to ensure his country’s victory over Russia in a dramatic speech before the U.K. Parliament, where he also thanked the British people for their support since “Day One” of Moscow’s invasion.
The embattled leader’s surprise visit to Britain in a bid for more advanced weapons comes as Ukraine braces for an expected Russian offensive and hatches its own plans to retake land held by Moscow’s forces. Western support has been key to Kyiv’s surprisingly stiff defence, and the two sides are engaged in grinding battles.
At a joint news conference at a British army base, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said fighter jets were “part of the conversation” about aid to Ukraine.
“Nothing is off the table,” he said. “We must arm Ukraine in the short term, but we must bolster Ukraine for the long term.”
Zelenskyy said Ukraine needs all kinds of supplies, not just planes, but also ammunition and longrange missiles
“Without this, there would be stagnation which will not bring to anything good,” he said, calling his visit “very fruitful.”
Then it was off to Paris for dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Wednesday’s travel was only Zeable lenskyy’s second foreign trip since Russia invaded on Feb, 24, 2022, after a December visit to Washington. Expectations also were growing that he also would meet European Union leaders Thursday in Brussels, where they are holding a summit
Sunak and Zelenskyy flew by helicopter to Lulworth Camp, a base in southwest England where they met Ukrainian troops being trained on the Challenger 2 tanks the U.K. is sending as part of the hundreds that Kyiv says it needs. More than 10,000 Ukrainian troops have been trained at bases in the U.K., and Britain says it will train 20,000 more in 2023.
“I am proud that today we will expand that training from soldiers to marines and fighter jet pilots, ensuring Ukraine has a military to defend its interests well into the future,” Sunak said.
In a pointed and dramatic gesture, Zelenskyy presented the speaker of the House of Commons with a Ukrainian air force helmet, inscribed by a Ukrainian pilot: “We have freedom. Give us wings to protect it.”
The president is trying to soften allies’ reluctance to send advanced fighter jets, both because they are complex to fly and for fear of escalating the war. The U.K. has repeatedly said it’s not practical to provide the Ukrainian military with British warplanes. But in a shift, the government said Wednesday it was “actively looking” at whether Ukraine could be sent Western jets, and was “in discussion with our allies” about it.
Nothing is off the table. We must arm Ukraine in the short term, but we must bolster Ukraine for the long term.
RISHI SUNAK BRITISH PRIME MINISTER