UK moves to take lead in cooperation with Ukraine — diplomat

Valeriy Chaly, Chairman of the Board of the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine, expressed this opinion on Espreso TV.

“That’s how I see it — Britain, Great Britain, is steadily taking steps to lead in its interaction with Ukraine. This isn’t just about signed agreements or declarations with identical names. If we look at these two documents, they are filled with specifics. It’s clear that the UK’s initiative is far ahead of France’s, while Berlin, under Chancellor Scholz, continues to hesitate. The German foreign minister may take a consistent stance, but the chancellor moves one step forward, two steps back. Britain, on the other hand, acts decisively. It has outlined its strategic interests clearly. For the UK, Russia is the enemy — that’s explicitly stated in its strategic documents. At least for now, we’re definitely in the same boat,” Chaly stated.

Speaking of boats, Chaly recalled a key moment in May 2021, when a British patrol ship entered the Black Sea.

“Let me remind you about those boats. That British ship passed near Crimea at a time when everyone else was afraid to do so. It made it clear that these territorial waters belong to Ukraine. Russia responded with threats — fighter jets flew overhead, warning they’d destroy the vessel. But the British ship sailed through undeterred, effectively showing, excuse my language, a middle finger to the Muscovites. Had those ships remained in the Black Sea instead of being pulled out just before the full-scale invasion, things might have played out differently. Unfortunately, that mistake is only now being addressed — in the Baltic Sea, not the Black Sea. Still, at least Britain has maintained a consistent stance. I see these steps as very concrete, and I’m convinced that the UK must have a seat at the table when the time comes for peace talks,” the diplomat noted.

• British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, during a visit to Brussels for defense and security discussions, planned to urge NATO and EU allies to take greater responsibility for supporting Ukraine.