Keir Starmer has announced new sanctions on Russia and a £210 million nuclear energy support package for Ukraine at the G7 summit in France, vowing to “choke off” Russian revenue and reduce Moscow’s dominance in nuclear fuel supply.
The British prime minister said the funding would “power Ukraine through the winters ahead” after devastating Russian attacks on power infrastructure. The deal, agreed with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week, involves UK Export Finance investing in Urenco, a multinational uranium enrichment company one-third owned by the UK government, to supply enriched uranium to Ukraine’s nuclear operator Energoatom.
Officials noted that a third of the uranium content will come from Urenco’s processing plant in Chester, supporting UK jobs and exports. The agreement follows a two-year deal to supply nuclear fuel to Ukraine.
Starmer also announced expanded sanctions targeting Russian finance networks and the shadow fleet of vessels carrying oil and liquefied natural gas, bringing the number of targeted ships to over 600. The measures will also disrupt a Russian state-linked network covertly procuring Western technology and aiding illicit money movements.
The G7 summit, attended by leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US, alongside the EU and other nations, seeks to shore up support for Ukraine. Starmer is expected to meet Zelenskyy and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, though no bilateral meeting with US President Donald Trump is scheduled.
