Rishi Sunak calls on Europe to stand by Ukraine ‘for as long as it takes’ and to make Russia pay for ‘horrendous war crimes’ – as Zelensky heralds ‘historic result’ after shooting down 18 missiles sent by Putin in failed 3am attack that claimed ZERO lives
- Sunak was speaking at the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, Iceland
- A day earlier, Downing Street announced UK is set to provide Ukraine with air defence missiles and attack drones
Rishi Sunak has called on European leaders to ‘stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes’ as it fights against the Russia’s invasion.
The Prime Minister told the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, that ‘the UK may have left the EU, but we have not left Europe’. He also said Russia must be held ‘accountable for the horrendous war crimes that have been committed’.
The comments come a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Sunak at Chequers and Downing Street announced that the UK is set to provide war-torn Ukraine with air defence missiles and attack drones.
Early on Tuesday, Ukrainian air defenses, bolstered by sophisticated Western-supplied systems, thwarted an intense Russian air attack on Kyiv, shooting down all missiles aimed at the capital, officials said.
Speaking via video link at the start of the two-day summit, Zelensky said: ‘Today we faced an intense Russian missile attack. At 3am 18 Russian missiles fell from our skies. Russia used ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, drone missiles, to make it difficult for our air defense to save lives.
Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (R) talks with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, as he walks with him to a waiting Chinook helicopter following their meeting at Chequers, the prime minister’s official country residence, near Ellesborough, northwest of London, on May 15, 2023
Zelensky addresses the opening ceremony of the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik, Iceland via videolink on May 16, 2023
‘But everyone missiles were shot down, including ballistic missiles – this is a historic achievement, thanks to all of you. I thank the leaders who helped us improve air defense.’
Zelensky said ballistic missile and drone attacks on his country showed ‘Russia is trying very hard to improve its ability to kill’.
He said Ukraine consequently needed ‘additional air defence systems and missiles – we also need more fighter jets, without which no air defence system will be perfect’.
The bombardment on Tuesday, which targeted locations across Ukraine, included six Russian Kinzhal aero-ballistic hypersonic missiles, the most fired in a single attack in the war so far, according to Ukrainian air force spokesman Yurii Ihnat.
Moscow on Tuesday denied that Kyiv’s air defences had downed six Kinzhal hypersonic missiles during an overnight barrage.
‘Russia has not launched as many Kinzhals as (Ukraine) says it has shot down’, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told the Ria Novosti state news agency.
The Council of Europe summit on Tuesday created a ‘register of damages’ to record Russia’s destruction of Ukraine for future compensation, and heard Zelensky plead for Western fighter jets.
Leaders from the 46-nation Council of Europe including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz emphasised that Moscow would be held accountable for the harm and destruction it has caused in its 15-month invasion of its neighbour.
The register of damages, to be lodged in The Hague, aims to record the tangible costs Russia has exacted on Ukraine in that time.
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with Governor of Novosibirsk region Andrey Travnikov, via a video conference in Moscow, Russia, 16 May 2023
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak addresses the 4th Summit of the Council of Europe in Reykjavik, Iceland, 16 May 2023. The Icelandic Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs will host the summit from 16-17 May 2023
Russian multiple launch rocket systems ‘Hurricane’ fire rockets at Ukrainian military positions in Ukraine in undated footage. The footage was released by Russian MoD on May, 16, 2023
At the summit, Sunak said: ‘Friends, the UK may have left the EU, but we have not left Europe.
‘We remain a proud European nation.
‘And we must work together to defend the values we all hold so dear.
‘The Council of Europe, with its huge reach, has such a vital role to play.
‘And we need to think about how this council should react to the realities of today.’
He added: ‘We showed great purpose in expelling Russia last year – acting decisively together within days of the invasion.
‘Let’s bring that dynamism to the issues before us now. And let’s send a message from this hall, loud and clear, that we will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes.
‘We will hold Russia accountable for the horrendous war crimes that have been committed.’
Sunak condemned Russia’s action as a ‘threat to democracy and the rule of law on our continent’, adding that with this act of aggression on European soil, and China growing in assertiveness, ‘the world is becoming more contested and more volatile’.
Earlier on Tuesday, Sunak agreed with Dutch leader Mark Rutte to ‘work to build an international coalition to provide Ukraine with combat air capabilities, supporting with everything from training to procuring F16 jets’, Downing Street said.
Air defence missiles are seen impacting targets over Kyiv
Explosion of a missile is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian missile strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine May 16, 2023.
A firefighter works at a site of vehicle parking area damaged by remains of Russian missiles, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine on May 16, 2023
Emergency services trying to contain a fire after a Russian missile strike
A spokesman added: ‘The Prime Minister reiterated his belief that Ukraine’s rightful place is in Nato and the leaders agreed on the importance of allies providing long-term security assistance to Ukraine to guarantee they can deter against future attacks.’
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelensky have agreed to separate meetings with a delegation of leaders from six African countries to discuss a possible plan to end the war in Ukraine, South Africa’s president said.
Cyril Ramaphosa said he had spoken with Putin and Zelensky by phone over the weekend and they each agreed to host ‘an African leaders peace mission’ in Moscow and Kyiv respectively.
‘Principal to our discussions are efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the devastating conflict in the Ukraine,’ Ramaphosa said.
The leaders of Zambia, Senegal, Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Egypt would make up the delegation along with Ramaphosa, he said in a statement, and Putin and Zelensky gave him the go-ahead to ‘commence the preparations’.
Four of the African countries – South Africa, Republic of the Congo, Senegal and Uganda – abstained from a UN vote last year on condemning Russia’s invasion. Zambia and Egypt voted in favour of the motion.
Ramaphosa did not give a timeframe or outline any parameters for the possible peace talks. Zelensky has previously said he would not consider a peace deal to end the war until Russian forces withdraw from Ukrainian territory.
Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut, an eastern city where fierce battles against Russian forces have been taking place, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, on May 15, 2023
Ukrainian soldiers fire a cannon near Bakhmut, an eastern city where fierce battles against Russian forces have been taking place, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, on May 12, 2023
Ukraine said on Tuesday that it had pushed Russian forces from the flanks of Bakhmut but conceded that Moscow’s forces were pushing deeper inside the embattled town.
In Kyiv, authorities were due to host a Chinese special envoy to discuss Beijing’s proposals for ending the conflict.
Deputy Defence Minister Ganna Malyar said Ukraine had wrested back about 20 square kilometres (7.7 square miles) of a Russian pincer movement around Bakhmut, the epicentre of fighting in Russia’s invasion.
‘At the same time, the enemy is advancing in some measure inside Bakhmut itself and is completely destroying the town with artillery,’ she added on social media.
The commander of Ukraine’s ground forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, had earlier said he visited forces near Bakhmut to hand out awards to Kyiv’s troops fighting in the longest battle of the invasion.
‘Wagner’s men went into Bakhmut like rats into a mousetrap,’ he said, referring to the Russian paramilitary group.
The British defence ministry said that ‘over the last four days, Ukrainian forces have made tactical progress, stabilising the flanks of Bakhmut to their advantage’.
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said in a video shared by Russian military bloggers on Tuesday that a US volunteer had died fighting alongside Ukrainian troops in the east.
‘He came to meet us. Citizen of the United States of America,’ he said showing what he claimed was the body of an American. It was not clear where or when the video was filmed.
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