Sir Keir Starmer has said that “we must make sure Ukraine is at the heart” of negotiations for a peace deal with Russia, as Volodymyr Zelensky has made it clear he will not accept any agreements which do not include Kyiv in talks.
The Ukrainian president has said to “not allow everything to go to Putin’s plan” after Donald Trump claimed that he and Vladimir Putin had agreed to start talks on ending the conflict.
The US president held individual calls with the Russian leader and Mr Zelensky on Wednesday.
Mr Trump said he had agreed with Russia’s leader to “work together, very closely” on bringing the three-year conflict to an end in the phone conversation.
The Prime Minister said it was “really important that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position”.
“Nobody wants the conflict to continue and Ukrainians – more than anybody – want the conflict to end, but we must make sure Ukraine is at the heart of this,” Sir Keir told broadcasters on Thursday.
“There can’t be negotiations around Ukraine without Ukraine being at the heart of it.
“And it’s really important that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position, whether that’s in discussions, or whether it’s continued fighting.
“Which is why I’ve been arguing since I’ve been Prime Minister that we need to ramp up the money, the capability and the training that we’re putting into Ukraine, and we’re delivering even more of that this year than we were last year.
“It’s really important: the strongest possible position for Ukraine. This has to be done with Ukraine.”
Speaking to ITV News, Sir Keir said that he expected the UK would “play its part” in a security guarantee for Ukraine if peace was agreed, and the country should remain an “independent viable state” following the end of negotiations.
He added: “But we do need that to be a guarantee that has US backing, and again, I’ve been very clear about that.”
In his first comments to journalists since the phone calls, Mr Zelensky said the main thing was to “not allow everything to go according to Putin’s plan”.
“We cannot accept it, as an independent country, any agreements (made) without us,” Mr Zelensky said as he visited a nuclear power station in western Ukraine.
“I articulate this very clearly to our partners. Any bilateral negotiations about Ukraine, not on other topics, but any bilateral talks about Ukraine without us, we will not accept.”
The US has suggested that as part of a peace deal, Ukraine must accept it will have to give up some territory to Russia, and that Nato membership is not a realistic prospect.
But Nato’s official position – endorsed by Sir Keir’s Government in the UK/Ukraine 100-year partnership – is that Kyiv is on an “irreversible” path to joining the alliance.
Downing Street has suggested that the UK’s position on Nato membership for Kyiv has not changed.
Asked about the UK’s position following comments overnight in which the US indicated that Nato membership was not a realistic prospect for Ukraine, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “No, that’s not changed.”
He added: “Nato has made a long-term commitment to Ukraine.
“There will have to be a clear process for that, it will take time, but the important thing at the moment is that we are ready to support Ukraine now.
“We’re putting Ukraine in the strongest possible position to ensure peace can be achieved.”
When asked if the UK Government agreed with the US that Ukraine should not join Nato, the spokesman had earlier said: “We share President Trump’s desire to bring this barbaric war to an end.
“We’ve said repeatedly that Russia could do this tomorrow by withdrawing its forces and ending its illegal invasion.”
It comes as Nato allies were gathering in Brussels for a meeting.
Arriving at the meeting, Defence Secretary John Healey said: “Russia remains a threat well beyond Ukraine.”
“My message in these discussions will be that there can be no negotiation about Ukraine without Ukraine and Ukraine’s voice must be at the heart of any talks,” Mr Healey said.
“Ukrainians are fighting bravely … it’s our job as defence ministers here at Nato, to put them in the best position to secure a lasting peace through strength.”
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte, who was chairing Thursday’s meeting, said that whatever agreement was struck between Russia and Ukraine, it was crucial that the “peace deal is enduring, that Putin knows that this is the end, that he can never again try to capture a piece of Ukraine”.
The former chief of MI6 has said that “sovereignty” rather than territory is the key issue on the table.
Sir Alex Younger told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “There’s been some very, very hefty concessions made without much being asked for in return.
“The key point, though, the key point is that the vital ground of this conversation is not about territory. It’s about sovereignty. Russia wants Ukraine to be a non-country, and if Donald Trump gives that away, we’ve lost.”
Mr Trump’s call with the Russian president came just hours after Mr Zelensky warned “Putin is not preparing for peace” and called for unity from Ukraine’s allies.
The Associated Press reported that Mr Trump said he spent more than an hour on the phone with Mr Putin, and, “I think we’re on the way to getting peace”.
The US president later spoke to Mr Zelensky but he was non-committal about whether Ukraine would be an equal participant in US negotiations with Russia.
“I think President Putin wants peace and President Zelensky wants peace and I want peace,” Mr Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
“I just want to see people stop being killed.”
