UK PM Andy Burnham to visit Kyiv on Monday as Ukraine marks independence anniversary

On his first international visit as UK leader, Burnham will co-chair his first Coalition of the Willing meeting of countries supporting Kyiv

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham will visit Kyiv on Monday on his first international visit since taking office last month, his office said, as Ukraine marks its 35th independence anniversary.

Burnham has vowed to give strong support to Ukraine as it battles Russia’s invasion.

The Labour Party leader’s visit comes as he announced that Britain had “agreed that defence firm MBDA can release classified information on UK components for the long-range missile, SCALP, to establish local assembly lines in Ukraine”, a statement said.

The missile is the French-produced version of the UK’s Storm Shadow, with both using shared French and British technology.

The UK was first to give Ukraine long-range strike weapons for defensive purposes in 2023, according to the premier’s Downing Street office.

It said that the decision to release the classified information would “allow the French and Ukrainians to move forward with the Ukrainian assembly of the missile”.

“It also complements the major UK effort to rapidly develop low-cost advanced long-range strike weapons for Ukraine through Project Brakestop,” it added.