UK to send armoured vehicles to Ukraine as Johnson meets Zelenskyy in Kyiv

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in Kyiv holding crisis talks with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in February (Peter Nicholls/PA Wire)

Boris Johnson has said the West will supply Ukraine with the equipment it needs to ensure it can never again be invaded by Russia after holding surprise talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.

Following the British Prime Minister’s unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital, Downing Street said Britain would be sending 120 armoured vehicles as well as new anti-ship missile systems.

Appearing alongside Mr Zelenskyy in a recorded broadcast clip, Mr Johnson said the West would continue to “ratchet up” sanctions on Moscow as he praised the courage of the Ukrainian resistance.

“I think that the Ukrainians have shown the courage of a lion, and you Volodymyr have given the roar of that lion,” he said.

“The UK and others (will) supply the equipment, the technology, the know-how, the intelligence, so that Ukraine will never be invaded again.

So Ukraine is so fortified and protected – that Ukraine can never be bullied again. Never be blackmailed again. Never be threatened in the same way again.

The latest support package represents a significant stepping up of UK military assistance to Ukraine.

Mr Johnson met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv in a “show of solidarity” with Ukraine, Downing Street has said.

A No 10 spokesman said the British Prime Minister was using the unannounced visit to set out a new package of financial and military aid.

“The Prime Minister has travelled to Ukraine to meet President Zelenskyy in person, in a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people,” the spokesman said.

“They will discuss the UK’s long term support to Ukraine and the PM will set out a new package of financial and military aid.”

A picture of the meeting was posted online by the Ukrainian embassy in London.

Mr Zelenskyy has said he wants a tough global response to Russia after its forces fired a missile at a crowded train station, killing at least 52 people.

His voice rose in anger during his nightly address on Friday, when he said the strike on the Kramatorsk train station, where 4,000 people were trying to flee a looming Russian offensive in the east, amounted to another war crime.

Dozens of people were severely injured in the strike and the dead included children.