Zelensky in surprise trip to London and Paris as he seeks more military aid
Zelensky in surprise trip to London and Paris as he seeks more military aid
Volodymyr Zelensky visited London and Paris on Wednesday (February 8) to plead for fighter jets as Ukraine braces itself for an expected Russian offensive. The Ukrainian president gave a dramatic speech to Parliament before flying to Paris to meet the French and German leaders over dinner at the Elysee Palace.
The leader’s European tour and pleas for more advanced weapons came as his country braces for a Russian offensive while planning its own plans to retake land held by Moscow’s forces. Mr Zelensky thanked the British people for their support since “day one” of Moscow’s invasion nearly a year ago, as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said fighter jets were “part of the conversation” about aid to Ukraine.
“Nothing is off the table,” he said at an evening news conference at a British army base. “We must arm Ukraine in the short term, but we must bolster Ukraine for the long term.”
Mr Zelensky said the country needs all kinds of supplies, not just planes, but also ammunition and long-range missiles. He called his visit to Britain “very fruitful”.
He then travelled to Paris for dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Mr Zelensky was greeted at Orly Airport by French defence minister Sebastien Lecornu. He was then met on the steps of the Elysee Palace with a friendly embrace by Mr Macron.
“Ukraine can count on France, its European partners and allies to win the war. Russia cannot and must not win,” Mr Macron said before their working dinner. He said they would discuss the “operational needs” of Ukraine, adding: “We will pursue the effort.”
The visit marks a turnaround in Mr Zelensky’s relations towards France and Germany, which earlier in the war were viewed by many in Ukraine as not doing enough to help. The trip was only his second abroad since Russia invaded on February 24 2022, after a December visit to Washington, where he met President Joe Biden and addressed the US Congress.
Expectations also were growing that he also would meet European Union leaders on Thursday in Brussels, where they are holding a summit. His day began when he arrived on a Royal Air Force plane in London and was greeted with an embrace from Mr Sunak. They held talks at 10 Downing St before Mr Zelensky’s speech to politicians in Westminster Hall, the oldest part of Parliament.
“London has stood with Kyiv since day one,” he said, repeatedly thanking Britons for their aid. The UK has sent Ukraine more than £2 billion in weapons and equipment.
Wearing his trademark sweatshirt, he urged allies to deliver jets to Ukraine, saying combat aircraft would be “wings for freedom”. In a dramatic gesture, he 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 was 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 UK has repeatedly said it is not practical to provide the country with British warplanes. But in a shift, the Government said on Wednesday (February 8) it was “actively looking” at whether Ukraine could be sent western jets, and was “in discussion with our allies” about it. Britain also said it would train Ukrainian pilots in Britain on “Nato-standard fighter jets” within weeks.
The Russian embassy in London strongly warned the UK against supplying the warplanes, saying Britain would bear responsibility “for another twist of escalation and the ensuing military-political consequences for the European continent and the entire world”.
Mr Macron has said France has not ruled out sending fighter jets but set conditions, including not leading to an escalation of tensions or using the aircraft “to touch Russian soil”, and not resulting in weakening “the capacities of the French army”.
Mr Zelensky also went to Buckingham Palace, where he met with King Charles and they had tea. The King told the president that “We’ve all been worried about you and thinking about your country for so long”.
The London visit came as Russian forces shelled areas of eastern Ukraine in what Kyiv authorities believe is part of a thrust by the Kremlin’s forces before the invasion anniversary. Moscow, meanwhile, insists that Ukraine is preparing its own battlefield push.
Articles-Popular
- Main
- Contact Us
- Planetary Existences-2
- Planetary Existences
- TWO REVELATIONS-2
- The Two Revelations
- Jeffery Epstein - The Saga - 9
- Jeffery Epstein - The Saga - 8
- Jeffery Epstein - The Saga - 10
- Universality of Initiation
- The Participants In The Mysteries-2
- The Path Of Initiation
- Initiation and the Devas
- Discipleship - Group Relations - 2
- Impeachment Investigators Subpoena White House - Ukraine
- The Fourth Way - Study of Oneself - P.D.Ouspensky
- The Probationary Path - 2
- The Final Initiation
- The Succeeding Two Initiations
- The Participants In The Mysteries
- Discipleship - Group Relationships
- Discipleship
- Jeffery Epstein - The Saga - 7
- The Fourth Way - Wrong Functions - P.D Ouspensky
- Statues are a mark of honour. Like Edward Colston, Cecil Rhodes and Oliver Cromwell have to go
- Jeffery Epstein - The Saga - 6
Articles - Latest
- Tory MP resigns after demanding £6,500 to pay off 'bad people'
- Richard Drax to earn millions from sale of Barbados slave plantation
- Met apologises to Stephen Lawrence’s mother for broken promise
- Greek and Turkish delegations meet in Athens as part of efforts to improve often strained ties
- Why £2.5 billion from Roman Abramovich's Chelsea sale STILL hasn't been paid to Ukraine war victims - explained
- Ex-Scottish leader Sturgeon's husband charged with embezzling party funds
- Ousted Myanmar leader Suu Kyi moved from prison to house arrest due to heat
- Vietnamese property tycoon sentenced to death in $27bn fraud case
- All seven British terrorist co-conspirators of al-Qaeda 'dirty bomb' mastermind Dhiren Barot are freed after serving just HALF their jail terms: Thugs were caged for a total of 136 years in 2007 over terror plot to kill hundreds in London and New York
- Forgotten contributions from black Caribbeans that made Britain great before Windrush
- Former US ambassador sentenced to 15 years in prison for serving as secret agent for Cuba
- Mali's junta bans the mMedia from reporting on political activities in a deepening crackdown
- US lawmakers, activists urge action on migration from, firearms to Haiti
- Ofcom launches investigation into David Lammy’s LBC radio show
- NATO needs to take punitive measures against Erdogan, here's why