“It is very important that this is a fair and bilateral agreement. After the end of this war, this is an agreement on our alliance with the UK. Not only must the UK react within 24 hours if any new aggression against Ukraine occurs, but Ukraine will also defend its ally and partner within 24 hours,” Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said while speaking on the TV air on 14 January 2024.
The agreement signed on 12 January 2024 by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Prime Minister of the UK, Rishi Sunak, declares bilateral military cooperation but also determines the planned UK military aid for Ukraine in 2024, given the current Russian aggression. The agreement highlights that the UK provided £2.3 bn of military aid for Ukraine in 2022, another £2.3 bn in 2023, and will allocate £2.5 bn in military aid during 2024. The agreement is valid for ten years and will expire if Ukraine becomes a NATO member.
Zelenskyy and Sunak sign landmark security pact between UK and Ukraine
The agreement is the first Ukrainian security agreement with a NATO country, but Ukraine continues negotiations with other allies to conclude similar agreements. The agreement furthers the Joint Declaration launched by the UK, Ukraine, and other members of the G7 in Vilnius on 12 July 2023, subsequently joined by a further 24 states.
Read more:
- UK boosts military aid to Ukraine with £2.5 billion package
- Zelenskyy and Sunak sign landmark security pact between UK and Ukraine
- UK Defense Minister announces “hundreds of air defense missiles” for Ukraine
- Six Ukrainian war pilots finish, ten more continue F-16 basic training in UK