Keir Starmer’s comments come after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held a call with Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Friday, the first publicly announced conversation between Putin and the head of a Western nation in almost two years.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday that he has no plan to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin as he reaffirmed his support for Ukraine at this week’s G20 summit.
Starmer said he wouldn’t speak to Putin as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz did on Friday — the first publicly announced conversation between Putin and a major head of a Western power in almost two years.
The call, which sparked backlash from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, was reportedly initiated from the German said, Putin said.
Zelenskyy has criticised the call, and said it would only make Russia feel less isolated.
Speaking to reporters ahead of a G20 summit in Brazil, Starmer reaffirmed his commitment to Ukraine, saying “We are coming up to 1,000 days of this conflict on Tuesday.”
“That’s 1,000 days of Russian aggression, 1,000 days of huge impact and sacrifice in relation to the Ukrainian people and recently we’ve seen the addition of North Korean troops working with Russians which does have serious implications,” Starmer said.
The British leader’s comments come after the election of President-elect Donald Trump, who has repeatedly questioned US aid to Kyiv, and suggested that Washington, Ukraine’s biggest financial backer, could withdraw support for the war-torn country.
Starmer added that he and his allies should double down on support for Ukraine for as long as it takes.
On Sunday, US President Joe Biden gave the green light for Ukraine to use long-range missile to strike inside Russia’s Kursk region, in a major change to policy for Washington.
Putin had previously warned Western countries against such a move, saying that it could represent NATO’s direct military engagement in the war.
Additional sources • AP
