Ukraine has shown the world it will prevail in its battle for freedom
After 100 days of Putin's war, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said we must be 'steadfast' in our support for Ukraine.
The UK’s steadfast support for Ukraine will never waver, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said.
For 100 days Putin’s barbaric and unprovoked war has brought death and destruction to Ukraine on a scale not seen in Europe since World War 2, but he has failed to make the headway he expected in the face of heroic resistance.
Tens of thousands have died and more than 6.6 million refugees have fled the country. While 8 million Ukrainians are internally displaced, almost 13 million are stranded in conflict zones and almost 16 million require humanitarian support.
Russia’s theft of grain and its destruction and blockading of key ports has also significantly exacerbated one of the most severe food crises in recent history, which now threatens many countries and is putting the world’s most vulnerable at risk.
The Foreign Secretary said this grim anniversary was a day to honour the resolve of the Ukrainian people, who have shown Putin cannot win as long as they receive the international support they need and deserve.
The Foreign Secretary said the UK would remain steadfast in its support to ensure Ukraine wins its battle for self-determination and Russian forces withdraw.
On Friday 3 June, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said:
Today marks 100 dark days since Putin launched his unjustified and illegal war against Ukraine. He expected the invasion to be over in days, but significantly underestimated the resolve of brave Ukrainians, who have valiantly defended their country.
Putin’s invasion has brought death and destruction on a scale not seen in Europe since World War 2. This war has huge ramifications for global peace, prosperity and food security. It matters to us all.
Today is a moment to pay our respects to the thousands of innocent civilians murdered since the invasion, and reaffirm our steadfast support for Ukraine’s heroic defence, to ensure they succeed and Putin fails.
Since Putin started massing his forces on Ukraine’s borders the UK has played a vital role galvanising and leading the international response:
Sanctions
Together with our allies, we continue to impose crippling economic sanctions, cutting off funding for Putin’s war machine. The UK has sanctioned over 1,000 individuals and 100 entities, including oligarchs with a net worth of more £117 billion. We have targeted Russian trade, with import tariffs covering £1.4 billion worth of goods.
Russia’s economy is set to take a £256 billion hit, with its GDP expected to shrink up to 15% this year – the deepest recession since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Military support
We were among the first to provide military support to Ukraine, including 10,000 missiles and training more 22,000 army members, helping to halt Putin’s barbaric onslaught.
Humanitarian aid
We are a leading humanitarian donor, providing £220 million of aid. We have sent more than 11 million medical items to Ukraine, and are donating 42 ambulances, saving thousands of lives.
International engagement
The UK has led international efforts to support Ukraine’s objectives, working with the EU, NATO and likeminded allies. The UK, Ukraine and 44 other countries launched an OSCE mission to investigate Russia’s violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.
We are making sure Russia is held to account for war crimes and, providing an additional £1 million to the ICC to support their investigations into war crimes and, with the US and the EU, creating the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group (ACA).
Exposing Putin’s lies
We are countering the Kremlin’s blizzard of lies and disinformation by telling the truth about Putin’s war of aggression. We will work with our allies on the urgent need to protect other European countries that are not members of NATO and that could become targets of the Kremlin playbook of subversion and aggression.
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