LONDON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will address the British Cabinet on Friday, the first foreign leader to do so in person since U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1997.
Zelenskyy is expected to brief ministers on the situation in Ukraine and the need for European countries to ramp up defense production in the face of Russian aggression.
Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Keir Starmer are also expected to finalize a treaty that will give Ukraine access to 3.5 billion pounds ($4.5 billion) of export financing to purchase weapons.
“Ukraine is, and always will be, at the heart of this government’s agenda, and so it is only fitting that President Zelenskyy will make a historic address to my Cabinet,” Starmer said in a statement. “Russia’s incremental gains on the battlefield are nothing compared with the collective international support for Ukraine, or the strength of ties between our people.”
In an interview with the BBC, Zelenskyy said he is also seeking clarification about Ukraine’s ability to use Storm Shadow missiles supplied by Britain against targets in Russia. Some Kyiv allies are reluctant to provide such authorization because of concerns it could draw the West into direct conflict with Russia.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine needed the missiles to counter Russian attacks on his country.
“We need very strong support from (the) prime minister,” he told the BBC. “We need a decision about long distance weapons, long range, to use it. We need it very much. They’re targeting our hospitals, schools. We just want to answer exactly to the point where from they target us.”
The Storm Shadow is an air-launched cruise missile with a range of more than 250 kilometers (155 miles).
U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey said Ukraine already has permission to use the missiles against targets in Russia, but the rules for exactly what can be targeted and under what circumstances are “complex questions” that are the subject of intense negotiations.
“We’re providing weapons to Ukraine for their defense of their sovereign country, and that does not preclude them hitting targets in Russia, but that must be done by the Ukrainians. It must be done within the parameters and the bounds of international humanitarian law,” Healey told the BBC.
Leaders from across Europe expressed support for Ukraine and concern about the direction of the United States on Thursday at a security-focused summit in the U.K. clouded by worries about whether the U.S. will remain a reliable ally if Donald Trump wins a second presidency.