24 June 2026 17:46 UTC · UK Government · GOV.UK Speech · Source · Email X Link

UK Government says increase sanctions and strengthen European NATO

Key points

Ramp up sanctions and military support for Ukraine
Strengthen European NATO and increase defence funding

TL;DR

UK Government pledges unwavering support to Ukraine and to capitalise on Ukraine’s newfound momentum.
Calls to ramp up sanctions on Russia and provide more military support, citing signs of Russian setbacks.
Urges decisive strengthening of European NATO, increased defence funding, and deeper European industrial cooperation.

Original text

Thank you, Friedrich. It’s a real pleasure to be here with all of you and thank you so much for your kind words, it has been my privilege to work with you on these really important issues and I am proud of the work we have done over the last two years to rebuild our relationship with our allies in Europe and around the world. I’m proud that Britain is standing up once again for decency, respect, and the rule of law. Last week at the G7, and thank you again Emmanuel for hosting a successful G7, we pledged our unwavering support to Ukraine and we’ve been able to echo that here today - our determination to capitalise on Ukraine’s newfound momentum. They are increasingly able to push Russia back on the battlefield. That’s very much been the story of this year. There are clear signs that as Russia loses ground and their economy struggles, the mood in Moscow is turning against Putin’s war. So this is a really important moment to ramp up the pressure on their economy with more sanctions and providing Ukraine with more military support. We are committed to driving this forward and that this should be the first item on the agenda at the NATO summit in a couple of weeks time. The second key issue at the summit must be building a more European NATO. We’ve been making this argument for some time but now is the time at this summit to really push this argument forward. Our aim together should be to lead a decisive strengthening of European leadership and sovereign capabilities, working of course in full coordination with the United States. Because we know that is what it will take to keep our countries safe, deter those who would do us harm and preserve the most successful military alliance in history. That is the big strategic challenge of the moment in the face of a clear and growing threats that we face and we are all playing our full part. The UK is ready to implement the largest increase in defence funding since the cold war. We’ve already taken steps last year to that end and we’ll take further steps and we’re going further, working to deliver our defence investment plan ahead of the NATO summit, not just to increase how much we spend on defence but to completely overhaul how we spend it to learn the lessons of Ukraine and to ensure that we’re ready to meet the threats of today and of tomorrow. And look, one final point, it is clear that this renewal of European defence must be fuelled by a generational shift in European industrial cooperation. The reality of modern warfare is that as well as outmanoeuvring the enemy, we must be able to out-innovate and out-produce them as well. More than ever, economic and technological power is the basis for military power and so we must harness this moment to boost our cooperation and at the same time boost jobs, growth and opportunity for all of our people for many years to come. Thank you.

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