The United Kingdom provided Ukraine with 2.3 billion pounds sterling ($2.8 billion) in 2022 and is set to send the same amount of assistance or exceed it in 2023 as well as become the first country to deliver longer-range weapons to Kiev, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Saturday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2023) The United Kingdom provided Ukraine with 2.3 billion Pounds sterling ($2.8 billion) in 2022 and is set to send the same amount of assistance or exceed it in 2023 as well as become the first country to deliver longer-range weapons to Kiev, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Saturday.
"Just this year we became the first country in the world to provide tanks to Ukraine and the first to train pilots and marines. We gave 2.3 billion pounds last year, and we will match or exceed that in 2023," Sunak said at the 2023 Munich Security Conference.
The prime minister also said that the UK would provide "more arms in the next three months" than London delivered in 2022 and called on the European states to boost weapons delivery to Kiev.
"What do we have those stockpiles for? If you are a European nation and you have this equipment ... and if one of those stockpiles is now helping to degrade a Russian tank, that is precisely what it would have been used for, you would have in your stockpile for," Sunak said.
He added that the United Kingdom "will be the first country to provide Ukraine with longer-range weapons."
Earlier this week, Sunak and Polish President Andrzej Duda agreed on the importance of stepping up support for Ukraine in the coming weeks, and also discussed the training of Ukrainian pilots on NATO aircraft, which would begin in the United Kingdom soon.
Western countries ramped up their military support for Ukraine after Russia launched a special military operation there on February 24, 2022. In December, Kiev said it hoped to receive tanks from Western countries in 2023.
In February, Ukraine's government started negotiations with its allies on the supply of longer-range missiles and jets to prepare for a counter-offensive. The Kremlin has repeatedly warned against further escalation that could lead to direct involvement of US and NATO in the conflict.
