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Talks on the Ukraine peacekeeping force are reaching the stage of a “military plan” aimed at “keeping the skies safe”, Sir Keir Starmer has said.
The Prime Minister has said the “timetable now is coming into focus”, and that if a deal comes to fruition, the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ needs to be ready to react right away.
He told broadcasters: “That’s why it’s important today that we’re turning the political momentum that we had on the weekend, in the meeting that I convened of nearly 30 political leaders, turning it today from the political concept into military plans.
“So, that’s what’s happening and today, those plans are focusing on keeping the skies safe, the seas safe and the borders safe and secure in Ukraine and working with Ukrainians.
“Now, we’re working at pace, because we don’t know if there’ll be a deal, I certainly hope there will be, but if there’s a deal, it’s really important that we’re able to react straight away.”
It comes after Starmer announced the UK would hike its own defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP from 2027, with an ambition to reach three per cent in the next Parliament.
Ukraine defence talks
Military chiefs from the UK and its allies met on Thursday to discuss how peacekeepers could operate in Ukraine to deter further Russian attacks if a deal to end the war is reached.
It could mean British forces currently guarding Nato’s eastern flank being redeployed to Ukraine, with other allies filling the gap, according to the PA news agency.
Calls this week between US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, have yet failed to produce the 30-day ceasefire envisaged by the White House.
Instead Putin agreed to a truce on hitting energy infrastructure, although Ukraine has said other civilian targets including a hospital had been struck.
No Putin ‘veto’
Foreign secretary David Lammy said Putin should not be given a “veto” over the presence of European peacekeepers in Ukraine if a deal is done to end the war.
Speaking at a British Chambers of Commerce event in London, he said: “What we certainly can’t do is give Putin a veto over the security architecture that will govern that peace.”
Downing Street said the military leaders would be involved in “granular planning” of the details of any potential deployment.
Zelensky said he believes a “lasting peace can be achieved this year” after a call to Trump, who has suggested the US takes ownership of Ukrainian power plants to ensure security.
The Ukrainian President said Russia carried out drone attacks overnight, including “nearly 200 Shahed drones and decoy UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles)”, which left “ten people wounded, including four children, and damage to homes, a church, and infrastructure.”
