The UK Secretary of State for Defense, John Healey, paid a visit to Ukraine, where Ukrinform managed to get a blitz interview to highlight the pressing challenges related to the ongoing Russian aggression, Vladimir Putin’s nuclear rhetoric, UK security and defense support for Ukraine, war settlement prospects, as well as to find out how the UK perceives a military threat posed by Russia.
WE ARE NOT INTIMIDATED BY PUTIN'S NUCLEAR RHETORIC
- Vladimir Putin skillfully manipulates global fears of a nuclear war, thus imposing his rules of the game on Western leaders. How could Western leaders in their turn impose their own rules of the game on Putin?
- First, we cannot be intimidated by Putin's rhetoric or his escalation, and we're not.
The purpose of me being here in Kyiv is to discuss with Defense Minister Rustem Umerov the shared plan we have to strengthen Ukraine – and not just now, immediately in the battle that you're still waging, but also throughout 2025 and beyond.
That's the way also of saying to Putin that we will stand with Ukraine and we will work to coordinate other countries to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.
And he will not prevail, however long it takes. This is about making Ukraine strong and putting pressure on Putin.
That's the imperative, that's the requirement for us to work together in the weeks and months ahead.
IT'S UKRAINIANS THAT DECIDE WHEN TO START SETTLEMENT TALKS
- Do you believe that the incoming administration across the Atlantic, the Donald Trump administration will be able to stop the war with their efforts, let alone in 24 hours?
- It’s Ukrainians that are fighting, it's Ukrainians that decide when to start talking. And our duty – and we will do so – is to stand by Ukraine while you fight. We'll stand by Ukraine while you talk. And most importantly, if the fighting stops, our support will continue.
And we're stepping up our military aid for you now with a new package of marine drones, air defense, and artillery. And we are developing our plans together with your defense leadership throughout 2025.
MILITARY TRAINING WILL NOT STOP EVEN IF HOSTILITIES END
- Speaking of continued support, there is the ongoing Operation INTERFLEX… If the hot phase of the war stops this year, will the training of Ukrainian recruits continue within that operation?
- I've made the commitment that the UK will continue to lead INTERFLEX training throughout 2025. The need that Ukraine has, if the fighting stops, does not end for training, for military support, for the solidarity and support that the UK working with other allies can provide to your country.
It will make you stronger in future, it will make you more secure in future, and part of the discussions Minister Umerov and I have had today is about how we can further strengthen your industry in Ukraine to be a crucial part of your ability to fight now and to defend yourselves with allies in the future.
PEACEKEEPING MISSION ISSUE WOULD BE A JUMP WELL AHEAD OF CURRENT PRESSURES
- Would the UK be ready to support in any format the deployment of an international peacekeeping mission in Ukraine even if these troops don't engage in combat?
- You know, for me it’s jumping well ahead of where we are now. It's jumping well ahead of the pressures that you face now. So that's why the focus of our discussions today has been the military aid that we provide and will step up, the coordination that the UK can step up with other international allies, as well as some of the longer-term planning. And we will always try to respond to what Ukraine needs and plan together, as well as stand together.
RUSSIAN AGGRESSION IS ONE OF NATO'S ACUTE CHALLENGES
- A bit of a personal question maybe, but your son, as you said in one of your interviews, enlisted in the Royal Marines Reserve in the face of Russian aggression. Who is he going to defend his country against? Is a Russian military threat relevant to the UK right now?
- The military aggression, and the wider aggression from Russia is one of the acute challenges that NATO together, and the UK as a leading nation in NATO, face. And that is why you've seen NATO overhaul its plans for defending NATO borders, for strengthening deterrence, and also for stepping up, as NATO countries, our support for Ukraine.
Ievgen Matiushenko, Kyiv
Photo: Serhiy Chuzavkov