Rishi Sunak has said the UK will be able to train Ukrainian pilots to use Western fighter jets “relatively soon” as Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated calls for a “jet coalition”.
Mr Sunak said the provision of warplanes was “not straightforward” but said Britain will play an integral role in a coalition of countries providing that support to Ukraine.
Speaking after his talk with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Chequers, Mr Sunak said: “We are going to be a key part of the coalition of countries that provides that support to Volodymyr and Ukraine.
“It is not a straightforward thing as Volodymyr and I have been discussing to build up that fighter combat aircraft capability.
“It’s not just the provision of planes its also the training of pilots and all the logistics that go alongside that and the UK can play a big part in that.
“One thing we will be doing starting actually relatively soon is training of Ukrainian pilots and that’s something we’ve discussed today and we’re ready to implement those plans in relatively short order.”
Mr Zelenskyy said the issue was “very important” for Ukraine and said “we have to work a little bit more on it”.
The Prime Minister has also confirmed further UK provision of further unmanned aerial systems, including hundreds of new long-range attack drones with a range of over 200km.
By Emma Soteriou
