Keir Starmer vowed long-term cooperation with Ukraine during his visit to Kiev

Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain met President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine in Kyiv on Thursday, in a show of solidarity four days before Donald J. Trump’s inauguration.

The trip to Ukraine, Mr Starmer’s first since he became prime minister in the summer, comes amid a flurry of diplomatic activity between Kyiv and European allies, who are watching to see if whether Mr. Trump will maintain US support for Ukraine in the Ukraine issue or not. war against Russia.

Britain is the third largest supplier of military aid to Ukraine, after the United States and Germany, and on Thursday Mr. Starmer and Mr. Zelensky signed a “100-year partnership” between the two countries.

“We have reached a new level – this is not just a strategic relationship,” Zelensky said, according to Ukrainian media. Mr Starmer said during the visit that Britain would provide more military aid to Ukraine this year “than ever before”, news reports added.

The cooperation agreement will include a special focus on maritime security and promises increased cooperation in technology, health care and education. It follows a narrower security agreement signed a year ago in response to an invasion that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia ordered in 2022.

“Putin’s ambition to push Ukraine away from its closest partners is a colossal strategic failure,” Mr. Starmer said. said in a statement. “Instead, we are closer than ever.”

Mr. Trump has said he has a plan quickly ended the warBut he hasn’t said how he will do it. Marco Rubio, his pick for secretary of state, said this week Both Russia and Ukraine will have to make concessions in any negotiations.

Kyiv’s official stance is that it will not negotiate directly with Putin, a stance confirmed by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha on Wednesday. But Mr. Zelensky has said he hopes to meet Mr. Trump at the earliest opportunity.

On Thursday, Valery ZaluzhnyUkraine’s ambassador to the UK and former commander-in-chief accompanied Mr Starmer on the visit. He said the partnership will deepen the security relationship and enhance cooperation between the two countries.

Mr. Zelensky said at an allied meeting in Germany this month that he planned to discuss with Mr. Starmer “in the coming weeks” the possibility of Britain sending peacekeepers to Ukraine. The Ukrainian leader also presented this idea to other European leadersbut they met it with skepticism.

Ukraine has received support in other ways from other European allies.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said during a visit to Kiev on Tuesday that he was optimistic that Berlin would seek to send another 3 billion euros (about $3.1 billion) in military aid. But Germany is facing its own political upheaval after the govt collapsed a month ago.

Mr. Zelensky discussed continued French military support for Ukraine with President Emmanuel Macron in a phone call this week, according to Mr. Zelensky’s officeand a Latvian delegation visited Ukraine on Tuesday to discuss military and humanitarian assistance.

And on Wednesday, Mr. Zelensky was in Warsawwhere he met Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, and the country’s president, Andrzej Duda. Both expressed support for Ukraine’s bid to join NATO, a prospect the military alliance was reluctant to confirm outrightdespite providing significant support to Kiev.

Ukraine has stepped up efforts on the diplomatic front as Russia’s offensive continues in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

The last gains Ukraine made in its counteroffensive in the summer of 2023 were wiped out after Russian forces took over, according to an assessment Wednesday from DeepState, an analysis group with ties to Ukraine’s military. Neskuchne village.

Moscow’s forces are also making progress in their efforts surrounded the key city of Pokrovskalso in eastern Ukraine, from the south.

While Mr. Starmer was visiting Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital was placed on air strike alert. Immediately afterwards, a loud explosion rang out over the city. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air defenses were active and warned people to stay in shelters.

The British leader and Mr. Zelensky visited a burn unit in the hospital where injured soldiers and civilians are being treated. After Mr. Starmer introduced himself, Petro, a civilian with burns on both his hands and arms, asked: “Is that the British Prime Minister?” and then added: “If Ukraine falls, so will Europe.”

Mr Starmer said the injuries he saw at the hospital were “a grim reminder of the high price Ukraine is paying”.

Naralia Novosolova and Cassandra Vinograd Report contributions.