Russian drone shot down near presidential palace during PM's Ukraine visit
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Keir Starmer's visit to the presidential palace in Kyiv was met with a message from Russia when a drone was blasted out of the sky above. The prime minister was meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss the next steps for Ukraine, on Sir Keir's first visit to Kyiv since his election victory last July.
The sound of anti-aircraft gunfire was audible in the palace courtyard as air sirens warned of possible drone attacks. This is a daily occurrence in Ukraine. One drone was shot down, although eyewitnesses think there were at least two drones operating and suspect they were probably surveillance drones, as the one taken out didn't explode on impact.
President Zelenskyy gave his Russian enemies short shrift, saying when the drone was detected: "We will say hello to them too.". Politics latest: UK to give Ukraine new air defence system. An audacious move by Moscow, Sir Keir said the drone threat was "a reminder of what Ukraine is facing every day" and that the war was brought about by "Russian aggression".
The PM reiterated his support for Ukraine's eventual accession to NATO, and noted the discussion at the NATO summit in Washington last year - when its allies put Ukraine on an "irreversible path" to NATO membership. However, President Zelenskyy, perhaps with an eye on the incoming Trump administration, was more forthright in his response to the question of Western allies supporting Ukraine's membership. He told reporters the US, Slovakia, Germany and Hungary "cannot see us in NATO".
