Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed members of the British Parliament, met with King Charles, and forged an agreement with Prime Minister Keir Starmer aimed at bolstering supplies of drones to friendly countries.
Zelenskyy's visit to London on March 17 came as the US-Israeli war against Iran draws attention away from Russia's invasion of Ukraine and threatens to strengthen Moscow's hand by diverting weapons from Kyiv and putting more oil money in the Kremlin's coffers due to price increases and eased US sanctions.
“I think it’s really important that we are clear that the focus must remain on Ukraine," Starmer said as he welcomed Zelenskyy for talks also attended by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
“There’s obviously a conflict in Iran going on, in the Middle East, but we can’t lose focus on what’s going on in Ukraine and the need for our support,” Starmer said. “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin can’t be the one who benefits from a conflict in Iran, whether that’s oil prices or the dropping of sanctions.”
SEE ALSO: Ukraine Warns US Easing Of Russian Oil Sanctions Will Boost Moscow's War ChestAddressing members of parliament, Zelenskyy cast Ukraine not as a supplicant but as an ally and a provider of security, touting his country's hard-won expertise at drone warfare and saying it has sent some 200 military experts to the Middle East “at the request of our partners, including the United States," in part to help Persian Gulf countries defend against Iranian drone attacks.
Earlier in the invasion, which began in February 2022, Moscow used Iranian-supplied Shahed drones against Ukraine before largely shifting to the use of its own drones, built in Russia using Iranian technology. "Russia then upgraded them, and now we have clear evidence that Iranian Shaheds used in the Middle East contain Russian components,” Zelenskyy said.
“The regimes in Russia and Iran are brothers in hatred and that is why they are brothers in weapons, and we want regimes built on hatred to never win in anything,” he said.
A statement from Starmer's office said he and Zelenskyy agreed on a new military-industrial partnership in which Ukraine's drone expertise will be combined with Britain's manufacturing base to boost the supply of drones, and that they will seek opportunities to cooperate with third countries. Britain and Starmer have been ardent backers of Ukraine in its defense against Russia.
SEE ALSO: Ukraine Peace Talks Appear Paused Amid Middle East Conflict. What Happens Next?Zelenskyy's visit came on a day on which US President Donald Trump criticized Starmer and NATO over the reluctance of Britain and other alliance members to send naval vessels to help open the Strait of Hormuz, a key Middle East oil transit route that shoreline nation Iran has virtually blocked by carrying out attacks and threatening more mayhem.
The war in the Middle East also appears to have halted US-Ukraine-Russia talks aimed at ending the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been a priority for Trump since he took office in January 2025. Little progress has been made on key issues such as control over Ukrainian territory in the Donbas, and Russia has shown few signs of readiness for compromise.
A new round of talks had been expected early this month, but it did not take place and no date has been set for he next meeting.