British prime minister Keir Starmer warned that Europe is at a “crossroads in history” as he led a summit of 18 nations in London in a debate on how to defend Ukraine and police any peace deal it may reach with Russia.
Mr Starmer warned the leaders, including those of France, Germany, Italy and Spain, that European nations must not “repeat the mistakes of the past” by devising a weak peace pact that Russia might be tempted to breach.
“Europe’s security is our responsibility above all,” said Mr Starmer, as the heads of state gathered to rally around Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, after he clashed with US president Donald Trump last week.
“We will step up to this historic task,” Mr Starmer said.
He also announced a £1.6 billion UK deal to supply Ukraine with 5,000 Belfast-made air defence missiles, as he promised to lead a “coalition of the willing” to defend the country and buttress any peace agreement with Russia.
The missiles will be supplied by Thales Air Defence in Belfast, creating 200 new jobs in Northern Ireland.
The summit of 18 mostly European leaders took place at Lancaster House in London on Sunday, two days after Mr Zelenskiy was humiliated during a White House clash with Mr Trump.
Mr Starmer told the leaders from Europe and Canada that they faced a “once-in-a-generation moment” to deter further Russian aggression.
Mr Starmer said Britain was willing to put “boots on the ground and planes in the air” to back Ukraine. He also suggested that France was among the countries that had agreed to commit its military. Yet he conceded there were several others who “did not feel” that they could send forces.
Still, “Europe must do the heavy lifting” of any military effort, said the prime minister.
He also said US backing for the effort would be crucial, and suggested he had already discussed this with Mr Trump in a phone call on Saturday night. “We are working with the US on this point,” said Mr Starmer.
He said he “did not accept the US is an unreliable ally”, as he was questioned about Mr Trump’s lambasting of Mr Zelenskiy, a day after Mr Starmer visited the US president.
Earlier on Sunday, the leaders had gathered for the talks hosted by Mr Starmer in the venue beside the Green Park, near the Mall and Buckingham Palace. British special forces wearing balaclavas and bearing automatic weapons loitered at the security cordon as, nearby, tourists mingled in the spring sunshine along with a smattering of pro-Ukraine protesters.
Directly after the summit, Mr Zelenskiy left for Sandringham Estate, the country retreat of King Charles, to meet the monarch in what was seen as a very deliberate show of British support.
The king last week also invited Mr Trump to Britain for an unprecedented second full state visit, which the US president accepted.
In advance of the summit, Mr Starmer held a meeting at Downing Street with Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni, who has a particularly close relationship with Mr Trump.
The two leaders stressed that European states had to keep working with the US president on Ukraine. This chimed with comments in the US on Sunday from Peter Mandelson, Britain’s ambassador in Washington, who said a peace initiative backed by Mr Trump was “the only show in town”.
Meanwhile, senior Government sources have confirmed that Ireland will commit to sending hundreds of millions of euros in aid to Ukraine this week when EU leaders are expected to announce a multibillion-euro package of financial and military assistance. With expectations that the EU aid commitment could be €20 billion – or even more, according to some sources – Ireland will commit to paying about 2 per cent of the overall total, or €400 million. The Irish contribution would be in “non-lethal” aid.
