British Defense Secretary John Healey on Monday pledged the United Kingdom’s full support for a new NATO arms transfer initiative unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump, calling it a critical opportunity to force Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.
Speaking at the opening of a virtual session of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG), co-chaired with German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, Healey said 52 allies and partners joined the meeting — a sign, he noted, of Ukraine’s continued resilience in the face of “Russian aggression.”
“This is a moment of maximum opportunity,” Healey said, citing Ukraine’s urgent need to counter intensified Russian missile and drone strikes.
He warned that Trump’s plan, which sets a 50-day timeline for a surge in NATO weapons deliveries, leaves Putin little time to accept peace terms before facing “crippling economic sanctions.”
“The UK backs this policy. We will play our full part in its success,” Healey told the group. “As members of this UDCG, we need to step up—a 50-day drive to arm Ukraine on the battlefield and to help push Putin to the negotiating table.”
Healey said the effort builds on the €40 billion pledged to Ukraine at last month’s NATO summit.
He also shared battlefield figures from Ukrainian officials, reporting more than one million Russian soldiers killed or wounded since the 2022 invasion began, including 240,000 casualties so far this year. Despite such losses, he warned, “Putin’s ruthless ambition does not appear to be waning.”
The UK, he noted, has already committed over £4.5 billion ($5.8 billion) in military aid to Ukraine in 2025 — its highest level yet. That includes £700 million for artillery shells, long-range rockets, and defense missiles, with £150 million delivered in just the last two months.
London has also shipped nearly 50,000 drones to Ukraine since March, part of its promise to increase drone supplies tenfold this year.
Healey announced further UK-German cooperation on supplying critical air defense missiles to Ukraine, and an additional £40 million donation under NATO’s Comprehensive Assistance Package.
“The battlefield situation underlines why a renewed drive to arm Ukraine is so important,” he said.