Ukraine's 35th anniversary of independence from Soviet rule is an opportunity to bring the war on Europe's eastern flank back to the forefront of international politics . And it's pushing the Volunteers to accelerate their support for the invaded country, led especially by Andy Burnham .
During his visit to Kiev—his first trip abroad—the new British Prime Minister authorized the defense company MBDA to share classified designs with Ukrainian forces on British components of the Scalp missile, the French version of the Storm Shadow missile. This is a key step toward enabling the French and Ukrainians to accelerate production of this long-range weapon in Ukraine. Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that the exercises of the Multinational Force for Ukraine—the peacekeeping initiative born within the coalition—"will be conducted in October and November."
The announcement was quickly clarified by sources at Palazzo Chigi, who said Italy "will not participate," in line with the government's stance of "no to Italian soldiers" in Ukraine.
On the anniversary of independence, Zelensky first received renewed support from his closest allies, starting with European Council President Antonio Costa, who, upon his visit to Kiev, spoke of the EU's "unconditional support," while the European Commission approved new funds worth €6.1 billion for air and missile defense systems, missiles, munitions, and radar.
From the Ukrainian capital, Prime Minister Burnham promised to provide "all the help that is needed," comparing Ukraine's resistance against Russia to the United Kingdom's fight against Nazi Germany. These words were first embodied in the authorization to release classified information on Scalp, which infuriated the Kremlin: "The United Kingdom is participating in this war, systematically and regularly fueling the conflict," and "is adding fuel to the fire," criticized spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Burnham's appeals appear to directly address the priorities expressed by Zelensky during the meeting, co-chaired by the two of them along with Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz, and attended remotely by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni: "We need at least 300 Patriot missiles for the winter," the Kiev leader told his allies, making a request that parallels the need to address the economic deficit in Ukraine's defense sector, estimated at 27 billion euros. One solution, according to the president, could be to advance the disbursement of European funds scheduled for 2027 or draw on frozen Russian assets.
