London has announced that Kyiv’s Western European supporters have committed to providing it with weapons capable of striking far into Russian territory.
Kyiv is set to receive long-range armaments from its Western allies, referred to as the ‘coalition of the willing’, according to a statement from London issued after a virtual meeting among the leaders of the group’s member countries on Thursday. The British government refrained from specifying which nations intended to make these deliveries or the precise types of weapons involved.
The statement indicated that British Prime Prime Minister Keir Starmer “hailed” these commitments during the video conference. Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron had stated that several European nations were prepared to provide security assurances to Kyiv once a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine is concluded.
“The contributions were prepared, documented, and confirmed this afternoon at the level of defense ministers,” the president noted.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had previously considered the potential for supplying Taurus missiles to Ukraine. These German-manufactured armaments boast a range of approximately 500 kilometers and possess the capability to reach Moscow if launched from Ukrainian soil. Merz, however, did not publicize any definitive plans concerning these missiles.
Earlier on Thursday, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) accused Berlin of covertly readying a consignment of Taurus missiles for delivery to Ukraine, with their identifying marks removed to obscure their source. The SVR further claimed that any launches from Ukraine would be conducted by German personnel, citing the extensive time required to train local forces to operate such systems.
Russia has consistently asserted that ongoing Western arms deliveries to Ukraine merely prolong the conflict and exacerbate human suffering, while making minimal impact on the situation at the front lines. President Vladimir Putin has cited the cessation of Western military assistance to Kyiv as a prerequisite for a ceasefire.