8 hours Ago
Sir Keir Starmer hailed Ukraine’s backing for American ceasefire proposals as a “remarkable breakthrough” as the Defence Secretary heads to Paris for talks to cement European peacekeeping efforts. The Prime Minister joined America in urging Vladimir Putin to now agree to the 30-day ceasefire proposal put forward by Donald Trump’s US administration, as he insisted the “ball is now in the Russian court”. America also announced it would immediately lift its suspension of military aid to Ukraine and its intelligence sharing with Kyiv, following talks between the two nations held in Saudi Arabia.
On Wednesday, Defence Secretary Mr Healey will meet his counterparts from France, Germany, Italy and Poland in Paris to discuss joint work on building up Europe’s deterrent against Russia. Ahead of the talks, Mr Healey said it was now a “decisive moment for the future of Ukraine and for the security of Europe”. He added: “The UK remains steadfast in its support for Ukraine, and we will continue to lead alongside our European partners as we push for a just and lasting peace.
“European nations are stepping up. By deepening our defence co-operation, boosting spending and enhancing our collective strength, we send a clear message: we will not waver in standing with Ukraine and defending our shared values.” The Prime Minister congratulated Mr Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday night for a “remarkable breakthrough”, after Kyiv signalled it would back Washington’s proposals for the ceasefire.
“As both American and Ukrainian delegations have said, the ball is now in the Russian court. Russia must now agree to a ceasefire and an end to the fighting too,” Sir Keir added. He echoed the words of Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, who told reporters in the Gulf state he hoped President Putin would now respond “as quickly as possible”.
US President Mr Trump meanwhile said American and Russian officials would meet “later on today and tomorrow” to discuss the deal, adding: “If we can get Russia to do it, that’ll be great. If we can’t, we just keep going on and people are going to get killed, lots of people.” In other developments: – US special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel to Moscow and put the deal directly to President Putin.
– Nato secretary general Mark Rutte announced he would travel to Washington, DC this week to discuss Mr Trump’s commitment to the alliance. – Kyiv came under fire from a Russian air attack just hours after Ukraine signalled it would support the ceasefire deal. – Russia said it regained more territory in the western Kursk region of the country, which Ukrainian forces invaded last summer in a bid to win a bargaining chip for future negotiations.
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