Boris Johnson has reportedly arrived in Kyiv for a surprise visit to Ukraine to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Prime Minister has now made two trips to the Ukrainian capital since Russia invaded the country in February, with the first visit occurring in April as Russian leader Vladimir Putin pushed his forces towards the eastern Donbas region.
Johnson's trip was confirmed by both the Prime Minister himself, and a video from the Ukrainian government, which shows Zelensky greeting the PM with a "hi, Boris" as he arrived at the presidential palace.
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The Prime Minister tweeted a picture of himself with Zelensky with the caption: "Mr President, Volodymyr, it is good to be in Kyiv again.” A message on Zelensky’s Telegram account read: “Many days of this war have proved that Great Britain’s support for Ukraine is firm and resolute. Glad to see our country’s great friend Boris Johnson in Kyiv again.”
Johnson pulled out of a conference of northern Tory MPs in Doncaster to make the trip to Ukraine, just two days before a crunch by-election in the region. The trip came one day after Zelensky was visited by French President Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Italy leader Mario Draghi - as Ukraine bids to join the EU.
A spokesperson for Downing Street confirmed that the visit is part of Johnson's offer to launch a new training programme for Ukrainian forces, with the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days. The programme would train forces using expertise from the British Army for three weeks, teaching basial medical training, cyber-security, and counter explosive tactics if Ukraine decided to accept the offer.
Speaking about the offer, Johnson said: “My visit today, in the depths of this war, is to send a clear and simple message to the Ukrainian people: the UK is with you, and we will be with you until you ultimately prevail. As Ukrainian soldiers fire UK missiles in defence of your nation’s sovereignty, they do so also in defence of the very freedoms we take for granted.
“That is why I have offered President Zelenskyy a major new military training programme that could change the equation of this war –harnessing that most powerful of forces, the Ukrainian determination to win. Two months on from my last visit, the Ukrainian grit, determination and resilience is stronger than ever, and I know that unbreakable resolve will long outlive the vain ambitions of President Putin.”
Operation Orbital, the previous training campaign, saw the UK train more than 22,000 Ukrainian troops from 2015 until the full invasion in February this year. Zelensky has more recently been asking allies to provide additional, and more sophisticated, weaponry for troops.
The UK has already pledged more than £1.3b in economic and humanitarian support to Ukraine, including more than 5,000 NLAW anti-tank missiles, long-range multiple launch rocket systems, and artillery systems including 155mm Self Propelled Guns. Thousands of night vision devices, GPS jamming equipment, and counter battery radar systems have also been shipped out to Ukraine by the UK.
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the head of the UK armed forces, said this week that Vladimir Putin's war was a "dreadful mistake" and Russia "will never take control of Ukraine". He added: "Russia has strategically lost already. NATO is stronger, Finland and Sweden are looking to join."
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