Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed Volodymyr Zelensky to Downing Street as Europe braces for Donald Trump’s face-to-face discussions with Vladimir Putin on Friday.
The Ukrainian president and Prime Minister embraced and posed for the cameras in front of Number 10 with a handshake as he arrived in Westminster on Thursday morning while gathered media in Downing Street shouted questions.
A red carpet had been rolled out for his arrival.
The Ukrainian leader left more than an hour later, and the Prime Minister walked Mr Zelensky to his car.
The Prime Minister’s meeting with Mr Zelensky comes after he said Britain stands ready to “increase pressure” on Russia if necessary.
During a call with the US president and European allies on Wednesday, Sir Keir praised Mr Trump for his work to bring forward a “viable” chance of an end to the war ahead of his scheduled meeting with the Russian leader.
Concerns have been raised over Mr Zelensky’s exclusion from the discussions between Mr Trump and Mr Putin, which are set to take place in Alaska on Friday.
Speaking on Wednesday, Sir Keir said: “This meeting on Friday that President Trump is attending is hugely important.
“As I’ve said personally to President Trump for the three-and-a-bit years this conflict has been going on, we haven’t got anywhere near a prospect of actually a viable solution, a viable way of bringing it to a ceasefire.
“And now we do have that chance, because of the work of that the president has put in.”
Further sanctions could be imposed on Russia should the Kremlin fail to engage and the UK is already working on its next package of measures targeting Moscow, he said.
“We’re ready to support this, including from the plans we’ve already drawn up to deploy a reassurance force once hostilities have ceased,” he told allies.
“It is important to remind colleagues that we do stand ready also to increase pressure on Russia, particularly the economy, with sanctions and wider measures as may be necessary.”
Sir Keir and European leaders have repeatedly said discussions about Ukraine should not happen without it amid concerns the country is being sidelined in negotiations about its own future.
