The Defence Secretary John Healey threw his weight behind Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and praised his leadership and commitment to his country during Moscow’s bloody invasion
UK Defence Secretary John Healey has directly contradicted Donald Trump after the US President branded Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator”.
The Cabinet minister threw his weight behind Ukraine’s President and praised his leadership and commitment to his country during Moscow’s bloody invasion.
On Wednesday the US President, who blamed Ukraine for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine almost three years ago, described Zelensky as a “dictator” as relations hit rock bottom.
In a rambling statement, Mr Trump said: “He [Zelensky]refuses to have elections, is very low in Ukrainian polls, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden ‘like a fiddle’.”He added: “A dictator without elections, Zelensky better move fast or he is not going to have a country left.”
But at a press conference in Norway, Mr Healey compared Zelensky to Winston Churchill by not holding elections during war time. The Defence Secretary, who has been to Kyiv to meet the Ukrainian leader, said had seen Mr Zelensky’s “commitment to his country”.
He added: “This was a man who, stuck in his country, led his country, and still does. He was elected. He’s the elected leader of Ukraine, and he’s done what Winston Churchill did in Britain in the Second World War – suspended elections while at war.
“And our job is to stand with the Ukrainians, support the Ukrainians, support them in their fight. And if they choose to talk, support them in the negotiations as well.”He added the US best security interests were served by an end to the war in Ukraine.
And he said the UK would support Ukraine on the “battlefield and the negotiating table”.
He said: “In many ways we’re jumping ahead of ourselves. Our Prime Minister had made the commitment that if we reach a ceasefire, we reach an end to the fighting, security guarantees will be needed and Britain is ready to play a full part in that and we’re leading some of the detailed discussions about what may be needed, but I am certainly not going to give you any detail that is going to make president Putin the wiser.”
He added: “Fundamentally though, the war is still being fought. Russia is still bombing, firing on, launching drones, not just on Ukrainian troops but on Ukrainian cities.
“The Ukrainians are still fighting and our job is to support them in that fight, to keep them as strong as they can be when they come to the negotiating table. Support them on the battlefield, support them at the negotiating table when they choose to do so.”
His comments came as Keir Starmer prepares to jet to Washington DC next week for his first face-to-face meeting with Trump since he returned to the White House.
Yesterday he was forced to hit back at the US President’s wild claim that Ukraine’s wartime leader is a “dictator” for suspending elections during Moscow’s invasion of his country.
On Thursday Mr Healey and the Norwegian defence minister Tore Sandvik also started negotiations on a new defence pact aimed at combating the threat from Russia in the Arctic.
Mr Healey said: “Kickstarting work on a deep, ambitious new defence agreement with Norway shows the UK promise to step up on European security in action.
“Norway remains one of the UK’s most important allies. We will create a new era of defence partnership to bring us closer than ever before as we tackle increasing threats, strengthen Nato, and boost our security in the High North.
“The UK is determined to play a leadership role on European security, supporting the foundations for our security and prosperity at home and showing our adversaries that we are united in our determination to protect our interests.”
