London: Britain will stand by Ukraine and will continue to do so whatever it takes

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is visiting Kyiv on Monday, according to his office, marking his first foreign trip since assuming office last month, coinciding with Ukraine’s 35th anniversary of independence.

Starmer had pledged strong support for Ukraine in its resistance to the Russian invasion.

The Labour Party leader’s visit comes as he announced that Britain “has approved MBDA, a defense company, to disclose classified information regarding British components used in the long-range Scalp missile, with the aim of establishing local assembly lines for it in Ukraine,” according to a statement from Downing Street.

The Scalp is the French-made version of the British Storm Shadow missile, with both relying on shared French and British technologies.

In 2023, Britain became the first country to supply Ukraine with long-range defensive weapons, as noted in the Prime Minister’s office statement.

The statement clarified that the decision to disclose classified information “will enable the French and Ukrainians to proceed with assembling the missile in Ukraine.”

It added that the decision “also complements the significant efforts undertaken by the United Kingdom to rapidly develop advanced, low-cost long-range offensive weapons for Ukraine through the Project Bryansk initiative.”

In Kyiv, Starmer will co-chair his first meeting of the “Coalition of the Willing,” which includes countries supporting Kyiv.

The statement quoted Starmer as saying, “On the 35th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence, the Ukrainian people should have no doubt: the United Kingdom stands with you today, and will continue to do so whatever it takes.”

Starmer’s visit follows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s trip to London a few weeks earlier.

These jamming devices are tablet-sized, possess military-grade specifications, and when mounted on drones, can disrupt Russian air defense systems, preventing them from tracking or targeting the drones.

Britain has been among the leading supporters of Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion in 2022, pledging approximately £25 billion in support, including £16 billion in military aid.