UK wants ‘50-day drive’ to arm Ukraine – media
UK Defense Secretary John Healey is set to urge Ukraine’s backers to launch a “50-day drive” to arm Kiev, local media have reported. The plan follows US President Donald Trump’s threat to impose secondary sanctions on Russia’s trading partners within 50 days if no progress is made on resolving the conflict.
Healey is expected to make the appeal when he leads a virtual session of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) on Monday. The minister is also poised to back Trump’s plan and pledge the UK’s support to “bolster Ukraine’s immediate fight.”
“The US has started the clock on a 50-day deadline for [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to agree to peace or face crippling economic sanctions… We need to step up in turn with a ‘50-day drive’ to arm Ukraine on the battlefield and force Putin to the negotiating table,” he is expected to say.
Earlier this month, Trump imposed a 50-day ceasefire deadline on Russia, warning of “very severe” new sanctions, including 100% “secondary tariffs” on countries buying Russian oil. He also announced new weapons deliveries to Ukraine, noting that the EU will foot the bill.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Trump’s remarks “will be perceived by the Ukrainian side not as a signal toward peace, but as a signal to continue the war.” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov stressed that Moscow will not cave in to any ultimatums but is still open to talks.
While the UK has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters, Luke Pollard, the country’s armed forces minister, warned last autumn of dwindling stockpiles due to years of military deliveries.
Moscow has consistently denounced Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, warning they only prolong the conflict without changing its outcome. It has also accused the EU and UK of impeding ongoing peace efforts.
Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday voiced concern over what he described as declining interest among the British public in the Ukraine conflict. He added that the current government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer is “distracted” by “a lot of domestic issues.”
