Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will go to Ukraine on Saturday alongside world leaders to put pressure on Russia to accept a 30-day ceasefire in the war.
Sir Keir is joined during the visit of President Emmanuel Macron of France, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Friedrich Merz, who has made his first trip to Ukraine since he became the German Chancellor this week.
This is Sir Keir’s second visit to Ukraine as Prime Minister.
Sir Keir and the other leaders use the visit to urge Russia to “agree with a complete and unconditional ceasefire of 30 days”-a proposal initially made by President Donald Trump.
The leaders’ decision to go to kyiv together is a deliberately symbolic response to the more than 20 leaders who joined President Vladimir Putin in Moscow for the commemorations of the Russian victory day on Friday.
The leaders also promised to “put pressure on the Russian war machine”.
During the visit, the four leaders will join President Volodymyr Zelensky for a virtual meeting of the “List coalition” – the group of around 30 European nations seeking means of strengthening the security of Ukraine if a peace agreement with Russia is agreed.
They will also pay tribute to the Ukrainian soldiers killed in combat since Russia’s large -scale invasion over three years ago.
In a statement published before their arrival, the leaders said: “We, the leaders of France, Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom, we will hold in kyiv in solidarity with Ukraine against the Barbaric and illegal Invasion of Russia.
“We reiterate our support for President Trump’s calls to a peace agreement and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to ensure lasting peace.
“Alongside the United States, we call on Russia to agree on a full and unconditional ceasefire of 30 days to create space for discussions on just and lasting peace.
“We are ready to support peace talks as soon as possible, to discuss the technical implementation of the ceasefire and to prepare for a complete peace agreement.
“We are clear that bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion and Ukraine must be able to thrive as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognized borders for future generations.
“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine. Until Russia accepts a lasting ceasefire, we will increase the pressure on the Russian war machine.”
Russia has announced that it would mark the victory day of the Second World War with a three-day unilateral ceasefire, which Ukraine rejected as a “theatrical spectacle”.
kyiv described the truce as a farce, accusing Russia of having launched thousands of attacks since its entry into force at midnight on Wednesday. Russia says it has observed the ceasefire and accuses Ukraine of hundreds of violations.
The German Chancellor Merz said he had great hopes that a complete ceasefire could be agreed this weekend.
The three -day truce of Russia should end on Saturday evening, but Merz said that it could be extended to 30 days and that the “ball is now entirely in front of the Moscow courtyard”.
Trump reiterated the call to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire after a telephone call with Zelensky.
“If the cease-fire is not respected, the United States and its partners will impose other sanctions,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
