‘You have full backing across the UK’: British PM Starmer hugs Zelensky in London after tense exchange with Trump

Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Starmer and the UK for their support after a tense Oval Office exchange where Trump and VP JD Vance criticised him over US aid.

Updated on: Mar 2, 2025, 08:59:32 IST

By HT News Desk

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A firm hug outside 10 Downing Street marked British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday, a day after the Ukrainian President's tense exchange with US president Donald Trump at the White House.

As Zelensky arrived, supporters cheered, while Starmer welcomed him with a hug before they went inside.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine's president, right, and Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, during a meeting at 10 Downing Street in London, UK, on Saturday, March. 1, 2025. (Bloomberg)

“And as you heard from the cheers on the street outside, you have full backing across the United Kingdom,” Starmer told the leader of the war-torn country.

“We stand with you, with Ukraine, for as long as it may take,” he added.

The Ukrainian leader thanked Starmer and the people of the UK for their support and friendship.

His meeting came a day after a tense exchange in the Oval Office, where Trump and US Vice President JD Vance publicly criticised him on live television for not showing enough gratitude for US aid.

Read: Suit remarks to tense moments: What went down in Oval Office between Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky

Zelensky was set to sign a deal granting the US access to Ukraine’s mineral resources, as Trump pressed for a negotiated end to the war with Russia.

However, he departed from the White House without finalising any agreement.

He was originally scheduled to meet Starmer on Sunday before a summit with European leaders on Ukraine and continental defence. But the meeting was seemingly moved up following his visit to Washington.

Before the summit at Lancaster House, a 200-year-old mansion near Buckingham Palace, Zelensky will meet King Charles III on Sunday.

Following the heated exchange between Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump at the White House, European leaders voiced their support for Ukraine.

The leaders of Germany, France, Spain, Poland, and the Netherlands shared messages on social media, with Zelensky personally thanking each of them.

Germany’s outgoing chancellor Olaf Scholz said, “No one wants peace more than the citizens of Ukraine.” His successor-in-waiting, Friedrich Merz, added, “We stand with Ukraine” and “We must never confuse aggressor and victim in this terrible war.”

With AP inputs

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HT News Desk
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