Britain has announced a £200 million ($270 million) fund to prepare for the potential deployment of troops to Ukraine, following a pledge to join a multinational force in the event of a ceasefire. Defence Minister John Healey, speaking in Kyiv on Friday, said the money would be spent on upgrading vehicles, communication systems, and counter-drone protection, as well as ensuring troops are ready to deploy. The announcement follows a summit of the 'coalition of the willing' where leaders agreed on a declaration of intent for a possible future deployment.
Russia launched a large-scale overnight attack on Ukraine, firing 242 drones and 36 missiles, including a new hypersonic Oreshnik missile that struck western Ukraine. The attack damaged infrastructure in the Lviv region and around Kyiv, causing heating outages in the capital. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine would seek an urgent UN Security Council meeting and a Ukraine-Nato Council meeting in response. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that the strike, close to EU and Nato borders, posed a threat to European security.
The UN Security Council is scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the situation. The leaders of Britain, France, and Germany condemned the attack as 'escalatory and unacceptable,' while EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the missile launch was a warning to Europe and the US. Ukrainian officials reported four people killed and at least 25 wounded in Kyiv, including an emergency medical worker. The Qatari embassy was also damaged, though no staff were harmed.
