Sir Keir Starmer is set to press Joe Biden to approve Ukrainian use of Storm Shadow missiles on Russian soil at a New York summit.
The Prime Minister has suggested he will press the US president to drop his veto when the pair meet at the UN General Assembly.
But he insisted that long-range strikes were not the only key to a Ukrainian victory as the White House resists pressure to change policy.
‘We will have discussions’
Sir Keir was speaking aboard the government plane en route to the UN General Assembly, where help for Ukraine was set to dominate discussions.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, is expected to use the occasion to lay out Kyiv’s “plan for victory” to key Western allies.
Sir Keir was asked whether he would authorise the use of Storm Shadow, which at present can only be deployed within Ukraine, on Russian soil.
He said: “We will have discussions about a whole range of issues, and we will listen carefully to what President Zelensky’s got to say.
“I don’t think [the] victory plan will be about a sole issue like long-range missiles, it will be about a strategic, overarching route for Ukraine to find a way through this and succeed against Russian aggression.”
Sir Keir said it would be “really important” for world leaders to discuss the war in Ukraine which was entering a “critical stage”.
He insisted that the UK’s support for the country is “resolute” and suggested he is prepared to sign off on further arms deliveries in future.
“I do think it’s going to take quite a bit of time at the UN General Assembly. And I think that’s really important, because it’s at a critical stage,” he said.
“Obviously, President Zelensky has a plan that he wants to walk through with all of us, and we knew that was going to happen.
“The support for Ukraine is resolute. We supply quite a lot of capability already under the last government – we’ve increased that under this government.
“That’s not a criticism of the last government, and we will always listen very carefully to what Ukraine says it needs by way of capability.”
His remarks came after Mr Zelensky called on Britain, the US and France to lift arms restrictions and allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russia.
In an interview with The New York Times, he said that he would raise the demand personally with Sir Keir, Mr Biden and Emmanuel Macron.
All three must sign off on the use of Storm Shadow missiles against targets in Russia.
Mr Macron has already publicly said he would agree to the move, while Sir Keir has privately indicated he is willing to.
The missile was jointly developed by Britain and France but relies on a US targeting system, giving Mr Biden a veto.
World leaders will meet in New York against the backdrop of Russia making some of its swiftest gains in the war in more than two years.
Moscow’s forces have been using a “scorched earth” tactic to capture Vuhledar, a coal-mining town in a key strategic location.
It has never before been captured, but pro-Kremlin military bloggers appeared confident that Kremlin forces would overwhelm the Ukrainian defenders.
Military bloggers reported Russian forces were also moving towards Pokrovsk, another strategically important town 35 miles to the north.
The advances came as Mr Biden said he had helped “ensure the survival of Ukraine” in his final speech to the UN.
He said that Vladimir Putin’s invasion had failed in its key aims, adding that Nato had emerged strengthened.
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
