UK pledges 100 million pounds air defense package for Ukraine ahead of winter
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The U.K. will provide Ukraine with a £100 million ($135 million) air defense package, including funding for Patriot missiles, as Kyiv prepares for renewed Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure over the winter, the British government announced on Sept. 8.
The package will include air defense interceptors, large-calibre artillery rounds, and drones to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian attacks this winter, and will be provided through NATO's Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL).
The announcement comes after recent visits to Kyiv by British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Defense Secretary Wes Streeting, during which President Volodymyr Zelensky stressed the need for additional support ahead of the winter, according to the U.K. government.
Streeting's first visit to Kyiv as defense secretary came on Aug. 5, a day after a massive Russian ballistic missile and drone attack killed at least 17 people and injured dozens more in Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast.
"Both the prime minister and I heard loud and clear on our first visits to Kyiv the importance of supporting Ukraine through this winter, as Putin prepares to use winter as a weapon by continuing barbaric attacks against civilian and energy targets," Streeting said.
The U.K. has pledged to provide more than 120,000 drones to Ukraine this year, with around 25,000 delivered so far. The systems include interceptor drones designed to destroy Russian drones, reconnaissance systems, and attack drones.
London also recently delivered its millionth round of large-caliber artillery ammunition to Ukraine and plans to send "tens of thousands" of additional long-range artillery rounds in the coming months.
The ammunition is being funded jointly by Britain, Germany, Denmark, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden.
The announcement coincides with the 36th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, co-chaired by the U.K. and Germany and bringing together nearly 50 countries that provide military assistance to Ukraine.
The latest package also follows an agreement allowing British defense company MBDA to release classified information on U.K.-made components of the SCALP/Storm Shadow long-range cruise missile to facilitate the establishment of local assembly lines in Ukraine.
The U.K. and Ukraine also agreed on Aug. 24 to deepen cooperation on artificial intelligence technologies aimed at developing new military capabilities.
