Sir Keir Starmer has said joining the European Union’s 90 billion euro (£78 billion) loan for Ukraine would be “very good” for UK-EU ties and for creating jobs in the UK.
The prime minister will announce the UK’s bid to join the initiative at a gathering of European leaders in the Armenian capital Yerevan on Monday.
Speaking to media as he arrived at the European Political Community (EPC) summit, he said: “In relation to the EU loan that we are discussing participating in, that is very good for Ukraine, because it will give Ukraine capability that it desperately needs in year five of this conflict.
“It’s very good for the UK, because of the capability that leads to jobs in the United Kingdom.
Arrived in Yerevan to take part in the European Political Community Summit. Many meetings ahead. The key priority is more security and coordination for all of us. Glory to Ukraine! pic.twitter.com/qibTMW70iH
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 3, 2026
“And it’s very good for UK-EU relations, which is very important as we go on to the various discussions.”
Sir Keir and French President Emmanuel Macron co-chaired a meeting on Ukraine.
Attendees included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Poland’s premier Donald Tusk, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, Nato chief Mark Rutte, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and vice president Kaja Kallas, and European Council president Antonio Costa.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the first leader of a non-European country to attend the EPC, also participated.
Sir Keir will tell allies that Britain wants to work more closely with them to ensure Kyiv gets the military equipment it needs to continue its fight against Russia.
The UK will also impose further sanctions on Russian companies later this week in a bid to disrupt military supply chains, according to Downing Street.
Access to the loan initiative could create opportunities for British defence firms to compete for contracts under the scheme.
The bid to participate in the scheme – recently approved by the EU after Viktor Orban’s defeat in Hungarian elections ended a long-running impasse – is part of the Prime Minister’s reset with the bloc.
Ahead of the EPC summit, Sir Keir called for the UK and EU to “go further and faster on defence” co-operation.
Brussels is pushing for Britain to agree to pay around £1 billion a year before detailed talks on further access to the single market, according to The Times.
The Government said it did not recognise the reporting, with a spokesperson saying: “We won’t comment on ongoing negotiations.”
Under plans to be unveiled in the King’s Speech, which have been criticised by the Tories and Reform UK, the Government will seek legislation to follow EU single market rules without necessarily giving MPs a vote on each piece of red tape.
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