Rishi Sunak calls on US to continue with ‘bolder’ military support for Ukraine

Rishi Sunak has called on the United States to continue providing “bolder” military support for Ukraine, following the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion.

Writing in The Sunday Times, the Prime Minister also said Ukraine’s allies should use money obtained through Russian sanctions and assets to fund Ukraine’s defence.

The UK has pledged to invest £245 million in producing artillery shells for Ukraine and £8.5 million in humanitarian funding as the conflict enters its third year.

US President Joe Biden has struggled to secure approval for further military aid, as Republicans in the US Congress have sought to block military aid to Ukraine as part of a partisan battle over immigration.

Mr Sunak said: “We should never underestimate what America has done for Ukraine and for Euro-Atlantic security.

“I urge them to continue that support, and I am confident they will.”

Mr Sunak also suggested Ukraine’s allies should look to directly redistribute any money taken from Russia or its citizens back to the war efforts.

He continued: “We must be bolder in seizing the hundreds of billions of frozen Russian assets. That starts with taking the billions in interest these assets are collecting and sending it to Ukraine.

“And then, with the G7, we must find lawful ways to seize the assets themselves and get those funds to Ukraine too.”

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron will meet President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Monday at an event aimed at doubling down on support for the war-torn country.

“Together with the French we will demonstrate the strength of unity against Russian aggression,” the Foreign Office said ahead of the meeting.

Saturday marked two years since the Kremlin launched its attack on Ukraine, starting the biggest incursion in a European country since the Second World War.

Mr Sunak visited Kyiv last month and met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to sign a new security agreement and announce an increase in military funding for the country.

Other allies from the EU and the G7 including Italian premier Giorgia Meloni and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen flew to Kyiv on Saturday to mark the anniversary of the war.

Asked why the Prime Minister did not travel to Ukraine with other leaders, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden told Sky’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips show: “You shouldn’t read from that any diminution whatsoever in United Kingdom support for Ukraine.

“We are four square behind them as you saw with the presence of Rishi Sunak in Kyiv just a few weeks ago.”