Britain and France have pledged stronger military support for Ukraine as Kyiv marked its Independence Day amid the continuing war with Russia.
At a meeting of the “Coalition of the Willing”, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham called for increased efforts to strengthen Ukraine’s air defences and maintain pressure on Moscow.
Britain says it will give Ukraine access to classified technology to begin domestic production of Storm Shadow long-range cruise missiles, while France has also backed the move.
Ukraine is also seeking urgent supplies of Patriot air defence interceptors, with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy saying the country needs at least 300 missiles to protect its cities and energy infrastructure ahead of winter.
French President Emmanuel Macron has called on Ukraine’s allies to speed up the delivery of air defence systems and interceptors, insisting support for Kyiv must continue despite Russian threats.
Zelenskiy, meanwhile, says Ukraine wants peace but will not surrender to Russian demands for more territory.
He also appealed for additional financial support to close a 27-billion-dollar defence funding gap this year, suggesting that frozen Russian assets could be used to support Ukraine’s war effort.
The Ukrainian leader says Kyiv is not asking its allies to fight the war, but to provide the weapons and support needed to defend the country and bring the conflict to an end.
