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Rishi Sunak and US vice president Kamala Harris have reaffirmed their support for Ukraine and the Western alliance at the Munich Security Conference in Germany today.
Mr Sunak and the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz agreed to ‘sustain the record level of international support for Ukraine’ and discussed their support for Swedish and Finnish accession to NATO.
He also told the conference it was ‘time to double down’ on support for Ukraine’s defence.
Meanwhile, US vice president Kamala Harris told the summit US support for Ukraine would ‘not waver’ and Russia would be held to account for its ‘crimes against humanity’.
Mrs Harris also warned China against providing ‘lethal’ support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Rishi Sunak speaks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during their bilateral meeting at the Munich Security Conference today
US vice president Kamala Harris addressed the conference and said US support for Ukraine would ‘not waver’ and Russia would be held to account for its ‘crimes against humanity’
Mr Sunak told the summit it was time to ‘double down’ on Ukrainian support by providing more artillery, armoured vehicles and air defence.
He is expected to say it is time for the West to give Ukraine ‘advanced, Nato-standard capabilities’ to defeat Russian troops and that more needs to be done to ‘boost Ukraine’s long-term security’ as Vladimir Putin‘s invasion approaches its one-year anniversary.
It comes after Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky‘s visit to Britain, Paris and Brussels last week where he urged the West to provide F-16 fighter jets for his air force.
Mr Sunak is expected to say: ‘We need to do more to boost Ukraine’s long-term security,’ Mr Sunak is scheduled to say in his speech.
‘We must give them the advanced, Nato-standard capabilities that they need for the future.
‘And we must demonstrate that we’ll remain by their side, willing and able to help them defend their country again and again.
‘What is at stake in this war is even greater than the security and sovereignty of one nation. It’s about the security and sovereignty of every nation.’
He will add: ‘What is at stake in this war is even greater than the security and sovereignty of one nation. It’s about the security and sovereignty of every nation.
‘Because Russia’s invasion, its abhorrent war crimes and irresponsible nuclear rhetoric are symptomatic of a broader threat to everything we believe in.’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is greeted by Britain’s ambassador to Germany Jill Gallard as he arrives at the airport in Munich to attend the Munich Security Conference in Germany
The Munich Security Conference will bring together like-minded top officials from around the world to discuss urgent security issues like the continuing Ukraine war and US-China relations.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggested the EU should join forces with the bloc’s defence industry to speed up and scale up the production of ammunition badly needed on the battlefield in Ukraine.
She suggested the bloc should do what it did during the pandemic to prepare for the large-scale production of a COVID vaccine.
Mrs von der Leyen added: ‘We could think of, for example, advanced purchase agreements that give the defence industry the possibility to invest in production lines now to be faster and to increase the amount they can deliver.
‘It is now the time, really, to speed up the production, and to scale up the production of standardized products that Ukraine needs desperately, for example standardized ammunition.’
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggested the EU should join forces with the bloc’s defence industry to speed up and scale up the production of ammunition badly needed on the battlefield in Ukraine
Mr Sunak is also expected to meet Mrs von der Leyen to talk about a deal to fix the Northern Ireland Protocol.
It comes after Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar expressed his hope for a positive outcome to negotiations between the UK and EU after a briefing phone call from Mrs von der Leyen.
An Irish Government spokesman said the Taoiseach expressed his strong wish to see a ‘positive outcome that provides a new foundation for relations between the EU and the UK’.
It continued: ‘Most importantly, he hoped for an agreement that can pave the way for restoration of the institutions under the Good Friday Agreement. ‘They agreed to stay in close touch in coming days as matters progress.’
US vice president Kamala Harris, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi and NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg are all expected to be there, but Russia and Iran are not invited.
Wang commented on a row between his country and the US, after Washington shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon which flew over American territory.
He denounced Washington’s handling of the incident as ‘hysterical’ and ‘absurd’, repeating Beijing’s assertion that the craft was just an unmanned civilian airship which blew off course.
Wang went on to question whether the US planned to shoot down every balloon in Earth’s skies.
China’s Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission Wang Yi questioned whether the US planned to shoot down every balloon in Earth’s skies
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged world leaders to speed up support for his nation when he addressed the conference by video link yesterday.
Kyiv fears crucial supplies will arrive too slowly to defend against new offensives.
Mr Zelensky said: ‘We need to hurry up. We need speed – speed of our agreements, speed of our delivery, speed of decisions to limit Russian potential.’
Speaking after Mr Zelensky, Mr Macron urged allies to ‘intensify our support’ for Ukraine to aid its forces in launching a counter-offensive.
Mr Scholz insisted German support was ‘designed to last’ but took a veiled swipe at other allies over faltering efforts to deliver promised tanks to Ukraine.
Berlin has vowed to send some of the most modern armaments from its military stocks but is struggling to persuade allies to do the same.
Mr Scholz said: ‘Those who can send such battle tanks should really do so now.’
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