Zelenskyy Meets New UK PM Burnham Aboard Aircraft Carrier in Portsmouth
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham held their inaugural meeting on board the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth at the Portsmouth naval base on July 27, focusing on defence cooperation and support for Ukraine.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham held their first meeting on July 27, aboard the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth at the Portsmouth naval base. Zelenskyy shared a video of the encounter on social media platform X, noting that his delegation was the first to visit the United Kingdom since Burnham took office. He characterized this as a strong signal of enduring support from the UK.
According to Zelenskyy, defence issues dominated the discussions. He stressed the need for Ukraine to have sufficient capabilities to protect lives both in the air and at sea. The two leaders also talked about advancing joint defence production. In a concrete move, the UK announced it would provide electronic warfare technologies to protect Ukrainian drones, which Zelenskyy described as beneficial on the battlefield. He also extended an invitation for Burnham to visit Ukraine.
It has been reported that during Zelenskyy's visit, Burnham plans to announce the transfer of Stone Cloak technology, designed to disable Russian air defence systems. Zelenskyy arrived in the UK on the afternoon of July 27, setting the stage for these crucial talks.
