UK Boosts Ukraine Aid: £150M Defense Delivered Fast

UK Gov

More than £150 million worth of air defence and artillery has been delivered to Ukraine in the last two months, as procurement of hundreds of air defence missiles and thousands of rounds of artillery to provide to Ukraine ramps up.

At least £700 million of this support is set to be spent this year on air defence and artillery ammunition including the £150 million already delivered - with other funding going towards procuring more drones, as well as critical contracts to maintain and repair UK weapons already provided to Ukraine, allowing damaged equipment to return to the frontline as quickly as possible.

With Putin repeatedly targeting Ukraine's cities in recent weeks with the most intense aerial bombardment since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022, the UK is joining the US and European nations in ramping up deliveries of vital air defence.

The UK signed an agreement with Ukraine in May to provide an additional £2.26 billion worth of military support that will be repaid using funds raised from immobilised Russian assets, with more than two-thirds of the money allocated for procurement of weapons and munitions in just two months.

The deal delivers on this Government's Plan for Change, by spending more on defence and creating jobs we will keep the country safe and boost economic growth.

The Defence Secretary will make the announcement at the 29th meeting of the 50-nation strong Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) which he will chair virtually on Monday alongside German Defence Minister, Boris Pistorius.

Opening the UDCG meeting, Defence Secretary, John Healey MP, is expected to say:

Last week, President Trump announced a new plan for large scale NATO weapons transfers and committed to getting these "quickly distributed to the battlefield".

The UK government backs this policy, and we will play our full part in its success to bolster Ukraine's immediate fight and to support our own and wider European security.

Alongside this, the US has started the clock on a 50-day deadline for Putin to agree to peace or face crippling economic sanctions.

As members of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, we need to step up in turn with a "50-day drive" to arm Ukraine on the battlefield and force Putin to the negotiating table.

It comes as the UK also completed delivery of nearly 50,000 military drones to Ukraine in under six months, in addition to 20,000 drones provided in the same period via the UK-Latvia co-led drone coalition, working closely with British defence companies to speed up procurement and delivery. The UK has committed £350 million this year to increase the supply of drones from 10,000 in 2024 to 100,000 in 2025.

At the meeting, the UK and Germany will announce a new agreement to partner in providing critical air defence ammunition to Ukraine. Germany will provide more than 170 million Euros worth of funding, which the UK will use to rapidly procure air defence ammunition via the UK-led International Fund for Ukraine for delivery in the coming months. This supports the aims of the Integrated Air and Missile Defence Capability Coalition, co-led by Germany and France.

The UK's military support for Ukraine this year is more than ever before, with £4.5 billion allocated for this financial year. In March, the Prime Minister announced a historic £1.6 billion deal to provide more than five thousand air defence missiles for Ukraine.

Last month, the Prime Minister announced a landmark agreement between the UK and Ukraine to share battlefield technology, boosting Ukraine's drone production and linking up the UK's defence industry with the cutting-edge technology being developed on the front lines in Ukraine.

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