£100 million to boost Ukraine's air defence

The British government announced the new aid package on Tuesday, 8 September. To be precise, the money will be used to provide Ukraine with interceptor missiles, large-calibre artillery shells, and drones. This assistance is being delivered as part of a NATO-developed list of Ukraine’s priority needs.

The support package was announced right as the Defence Secretary Wes Streeting was due to co-chair his first meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius on Tuesday. The group is made up of around 50 nations which are involved in providing military aid to Ukraine.

It also comes at a time after British Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced the declassification of blueprints for British-made components for the Scalp missile, which is a French-produced version of the Storm Shadow long-range air-launched cruise missile. The weapon was already proven effective in the Russo-Ukrainian war when it was used to strike targets inside Russia.

Streeting commented on the matter, saying: “Both the Prime Minister and I heard loud and clear on our first visits to Kyiv the importance of supporting Ukraine through this winter, as Putin prepares to use winter as a weapon by continuing barbaric attacks against civilian and energy targets.” Afterwards, he reiterated the UK’s continued support for Ukraine.

Andy Burnham spoke to US President Donald Trump on Monday. They talked about the war in Ukraine, agreeing on the need to “continue working towards a ceasefire that prevents more loss of life.” The peace talks process seems to have resumed as well. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have recently visited Moscow, where they met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.