Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will participate today in an extraordinary meeting of the British government, reported France Press, quoted by BTA, referring to "Downing Street" 10.
The office of the new British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, who took office after the victory of his Labor Party in the parliamentary elections in the country at the beginning of this month, announced that Zelensky will inform the representatives of the cabinet in London about the latest developments on the front.
The Ukrainian president, whose country has been resisting a full-scale Russian invasion for more than two years, is the first foreign leader to be invited to address British ministers in person since 1997, when the honor was bestowed on then-US President Bill Clinton , notes AFP. At that time, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom was also a Labor - Tony Blair.
"Ukraine is and always will be at the center of this government's priorities, so it is entirely appropriate that President Zelensky makes a historic speech in front of my cabinet," Starmer said.
The two leaders are also expected to sign a deal aimed at strengthening the UK and Ukraine's defense industries and increasing the production of military equipment and weapons, according to AFP. The deal is expected to allow Kiev to receive 3.5 billion pounds sterling (4.6 billion euros) in funding to support its armed forces and allow British and Ukrainian arms manufacturers to invest in innovation and capacity building .
Yesterday, Zelensky participated in the summit of the European Political Community in Great Britain. He called on Western partners to intercept Russian missiles and drones over Ukraine - an appeal that was rejected by a number of leaders.
French President Emmanuel Macron and new British Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised to "increase cooperation" are in the fight against illegal migration and to "give a new dynamic" of the bilateral partnership in the field of defense, reported France Press, quoted by BTA.
Macron and Starmer spoke on the sidelines of the European Political Community summit near Oxford yesterday.
The new British Prime Minister took office after the victory of his Labor Party in the country's parliamentary elections held at the beginning of this month, which ended 14 years of conservative rule.
Starmer and Macron agreed that the next British-French summit would take place next year in Britain. The last one was in Paris last year, when the British Prime Minister was the conservative Rishi Sunak.
Starmer wants to smooth relations with the European Union after the tremors that followed Brexit, notes AFP.
"Looking to the future, France and the United Kingdom will continue to cooperate in all areas of their relationship,", their leaders confirmed in a joint statement after their working meeting.