UK must help put Kyiv 'in strongest possible position' for peace talks, Starmer says
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The United Kingdom must continue supporting Ukraine's defense against Russia, in order to "put Ukraine in the strongest possible position for negotiations," U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a speech delivered Dec. 2 and published Dec. 3.
Starmer's remarks come as Europe prepares to step up military support for Ukraine ahead of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration in January. Trump is expected to push Kyiv into negotiations with Moscow.
"So we must continue to back Ukraine and do what it takes to support their self-defense for as long as it takes," Starmer said at the annual Lord Mayor's Banquet in London.
"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."
Starmer said that support for Ukraine was in the best interest of not only the U.K., but all of Europe, arguing that unchecked Russian aggression posed to great a threat to international security.
"The further Russian troops advance, the closer the threat becomes," he said.
"The more land they control, the more they control grain prices and energy sources, and the more confident (Russian President Vladimir) Putin becomes."
With Trump's return to Washington imminent, both the U.K. and France are reportedly exploring options to support Ukraine in potential peace talks with Russia. A senior NATO official said on Dec. 2 that one scenario could include deploying U.K. and French troops to monitor a ceasefire along the contact line.
Starmer backed up his rhetoric on support for Ukraine with shipments of Storm Shadow cruise missiles this fall, Bloomberg reported on Nov. 26.
Ukrainian forces recently used the Storm Shadow missiles to strike Russian targets in the western Bryansk region, one day after deploying U.S.-made ATACMS in similar operations.
