The Russian embassy in London criticized the U.K.'s plan to transfer more than two billion pounds ($2.5 billion) to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets, calling it a "fraudulent scheme."
Ukraine is already receiving U.S. funds under the framework of the G7's $50 billion loan covered by profits from frozen Russian assets, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Dec 20.
The U.K.'s latest estimate are in line with figures from Ukraine's General Staff, which, as of Dec. 19, sits at 768,220 troops lost since the start of the war. The figures do not specify killed or wounded, though the overall consensus is that it includes dead, wounded, missing, and captured.
According to media reports, the package includes over 92 million pound ($115 million) in equipment to support Ukraine's navy, including small boats as well as reconnaissance drones. A further 39 million pounds ($49 million) will be used to supply over 1,000 counter-drone electronic warfare systems.
The United Kingdom sanctioned 20 vessels of Russia’s "shadow fleet" and pledged 35 million pounds ($44 million) in aid to repair Ukraine’s energy grid, the British government said on Dec. 17.
"Everybody in NATO and in the EU right now has the feeling in their backbone that you should increase defense expenditure because of what is happening all over the world and with Russia," Estonia's Prime Minister Kristen Michal told Reuters.
Russia’s focus on the war in Ukraine has significantly reduced its ability to support Syria’s Assad regime, increasing the risk of losing key military assets in the region, the U.K. Defense Ministry reported on Dec. 13 via X.
The latest round of sanctions imposes asset freezes on five individuals involved in the illicit gold trade, including the CEO of Paloma Precious, which has purchased more than $300 million of Russian gold.
Key developments on Dec. 9: * Zelensky 'may consider' deployment of foreign peacekeepers in Ukraine to ensure ceasefire * Ex-chief of Russian-run Olenivka prison allegedly killed in car bombing in occupied Donetsk * Trump 'formulating a concept' to end Russia-Ukraine war * Russia claims bodies of Il-76 crash victims given to Ukraine, Kyiv says
Zelensky added that effective guarantees are currently needed for Ukraine's security, namely "real alliances and a real security foundation within the country," as well as "weapons that enable defense and deterrence of the enemy."
On Dec. 5, 1994, Ukraine had signed a set of political agreements that would guarantee the country's sovereignty and independence in return for accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Signed in Budapest, the memorandum would lay grounds for Ukraine to dispose of its nuclear arsenal
The world faces the dawn of a "third nuclear age," the head of the U.K.'s armed forces Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said on Dec. 4.
The United Kingdom's National Crime Agency (NCA) announced on Dec. 4 that it had dismantled a multibillion-dollar money laundering scheme that has enabled criminal networks, including Russian spies and oligarchs, to evade sanctions using cryptocurrency.
"We must continue to back Ukraine ... To put Ukraine in the strongest possible position for negotiations so that they can secure a just and lasting peace on their terms that guarantees their security, independence, and right to choose their future."
The official, who requested anonymity as they were not authorized to speak publicly, noted that these discussions happen in individual capitals, not within NATO.
A former UFO investigator with the U.K.'s Ministry of Defense has suggested potential links between recent drone incursions at the Royal Air Force (RAF) bases in the U.K. and foreign adversaries, including Russia and China. The drones were spotted between Nov. 20 and 22 over three U.S. Air Force bases in the U.K.
"I don’t think we should be sending in combat troops to take on the Russians,” former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said. "But I think as part of the solution, as part of the end state, you’re going to want to have multinational European peace-keeping forces monitoring the border, helping the Ukrainians."
"I think we have to face up to the fact that the Russians think they're in a state of war with us," Richard Dearlove, the former head of MI6, told Sky News on Nov. 27.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry barred 30 U.K. nationals, including lawmakers, journalists, and ministers like Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and Finance Minister Rachel Reeves, from entering its territory in a decision published on Nov. 26.
Unidentified drones have flown over three U.S. Air Force bases in the U.K. in the past week, U.S. officials said on Nov. 26.
The Russian Investigative Committee charged James Scott Rhys Anderson with "terrorism" and "mercenarism," following its long-standing practice of persecuting foreign volunteers that end up in Russian captivity.
"We are not committing U.K. troops on the ground to Ukraine, but we continue to support Ukraine with training and military assistance, and we have been absolutely clear that we will continue to do that for as long as is required and is needed," U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said.
The United Kingdom sanctioned 30 oil tankers of Russia's "shadow fleet" that carried billions of dollars worth of oil and oil products last year, the government said on Nov. 25.
Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. election revived discussion among European allies on sending military personnel or private defense contractors to Ukraine, Le Monde reported on Nov. 25, citing undisclosed sources.
A video of a man in military fatigues, who identifies himself as former British army soldier James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, began circulating on Russian Telegram channels on Nov. 24.
Luxury perfume seller David Crisp is alleged to have hidden over $2.1 million in illegal sales to Russia. He admitted on camera to "ignoring government edicts."
South Korea's national security advisor Shin Won-sik on Nov. 22 said Moscow had provided Pyongyang with economic and military technology in exchange for the troops.
The U.K. has sanctioned Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash, along with Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos, and Latvian politician Aivars Lembergs, according to the U.K. government’s website statement on Nov. 21.
The U.K. is prepared to send its soldiers to fight Russia if it invades a NATO country on the alliance's eastern flank, Rob Magowan, the deputy chief of the British defense staff, said on Nov. 21, Politico reported.
"Ukraine's action on the battlefield speaks for itself," U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey said in remarks to parliament on Nov. 20.
The drone coalition countries have pledged additional funding to support Ukraine with strike and reconnaissance drones, the U.K. government website reported on Nov. 19.
Key developments on Nov. 19: * Ukraine used ATACMS on Russian territory for first time, according to Moscow, media * Russia claims to capture village near Kurakhove, Kyiv hasn't confirmed * Putin approves Russia's updated nuclear doctrine * Over 50,000 Ukrainian recruits have received training in UK * Denmark to provide over $137 million
