Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky received a warm welcome – and a $3.3 billon loan – from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer Saturday, just one day after a heated, public argument with President Trump at the White House.
The leaders embraced outside 10 Downing Street in London, where the prime minister reaffirmed the Ukrainian leader had the “full backing across the United Kingdom,” as scores of onlookers cheered.
“That is the people of the United Kingdom coming out to demonstrate how much they support you, how much they support Ukraine,” Starmer said.
“We stand with you and Ukraine for as long as it may take.”
The pair also signed a new $3.3 billion agreement that will aid Ukrainian military supplies.
The loan will be repaid using profits from frozen Russian assets.
“This loan will enhance Ukraine’s defense capabilities and will be repaid using revenues from frozen Russian assets,” Zelensky said in a statement on X.
“The funds will be directed toward weapons production in Ukraine. This is true justice – the one who started the war must be the one to pay. I thank the people and government of the United Kingdom for their tremendous support from the very beginning of this war.”
The leaders met ahead of a summit with European leaders Sunday that will cover joint defense and security plans. Zelensky is also expected to meet with King Charles at his Sandringham estate.
The friendly conference came one day after a shouting match involving Trump, Zelensky and Vice President JD Vance erupted in the Oval Office.
The vice president criticized the Kyiv leader for taking part in photo-ops with Democrats during the 2024 campaign, and accused him of being ungrateful for US support during its ongoing war with Russia.
Trump also said Zelensky had “disrespected the United States of America.”
Trump and Zelensky were set to sign a deal that would have created a joint US-Ukraine fund investing in extracting the country’s rare-earth mineral supply.
Trump had been attempting to get the Ukrainian leader to ink the agreement for weeks, even sending Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to Kyiv to make it happen.
Zelensky rejected the initial deal but the two countries had gotten to an agreement on a revised draft, with the Ukrainian leader coming to Washington ostensibly to sign off on the final copy.
Instead, the framework was not signed and Trump “wanted Zelensky to leave” after the shouting match, a White House spokesperson told The Post.
With Post Wires.