Rishi Sunak promises UK will play ‘big part’ in training Ukraine’s pilots

The UK will provide Ukraine with air defence missiles and attack drones, Downing Street has announced, as Volodymyr Zelensky met Rishi Sunak at Chequers.

In the latest leg of the Ukrainian president’s tour of western allies, Mr Zelensky said the two leaders had also discussed western fighter jets and he anticipated “very important decisions” to be made soon. No 10 said Britain will send hundreds of air defence missiles and further unmanned aerial systems to the war-torn country as the Prime Minister met the president at Chequers on Monday.

It follows meetings in Paris, Berlin and Rome and comes three months after the Ukrainian leader’s first trip to London since the start of Russia’s invasion. Following the meeting, the president said the two countries were “real partners”, with Mr Sunak knowing details of developments on the battlefield.

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“We want to create this jets coalition and I’m very positive with it,” he said. We spoke about it and I see that in the closest time you will hear some, I think very important decisions but we have to work a little bit more on it.”

The Prime Minister stressed that the provision of warplanes was “not a straightforward thing” but said the UK was committed to training Ukrainian pilots using Nato-standard aircraft. No 10 said an elementary flying phase for cohorts of Ukrainian pilots will begin this summer, going hand in hand with British efforts to work with other countries on providing F-16 jets.

Mr Sunak said: “This is a crucial moment in Ukraine’s resistance to a terrible war of aggression they did not choose or provoke. They need the sustained support of the international community to defend against the barrage of