Prime Minister Andy Burnham will meet President Volodymyr Zelensky at Downing Street to discuss ongoing support for Ukraine. A military ceremonial guard welcomed Zelensky outside Number 10 during his arrival in the United Kingdom.
Burnham spoke to Zelensky over the phone on 13 October ahead of the face-to-face talks. The Prime Minister stated that Zelensky would not leave the UK empty-handed, noting that further military and financial support will be drawn up in the coming weeks.
Burnham is expected to promise further sanctions against Russia, though this remains uncertain. Regarding diplomacy, Burnham said, "What I have to do in my role is try and repair bridges so that the support comes back and therefore I should at this moment in time be careful in terms of laying the ground to bring people back together."
Chancellor John Healey called for a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas during International Monetary Fund meetings. At least 600,000 people across Ukraine were left without electricity following Russian missile and drone strikes on communications and energy facilities used by the military.
Ukraine remains ready to halt its own strikes on Russian oil refineries and other energy facilities if Moscow agrees to do the same. Donald Trump claimed a ceasefire on strikes on energy infrastructure was in place between Russia and Ukraine on 13 October, while also stating that Vladimir Putin agreed to release millions of tonnes of Russian diesel into the US.
Trump suspended sanctions on diesel from Moscow and remarked that it is "time for Ukraine to get a new president." Sergey Lavrov stated that Ukraine does not deserve the "respite" a ceasefire would bring.
"What I have to do in my role is try and repair bridges so that the support comes back and therefore I should at this moment in time be careful in terms of laying the ground to bring people back together."
Andy Burnham
