British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will offer up to £242 million in new support for Ukraine during the G7 summit in Italy, which begins on Thursday, according to his office.
Ukraine is anticipated to be at the top of the agenda at the meeting in Puglia, where President Volodymyr Zelensky will join G7 leaders in an effort to reach an agreement on utilizing blocked Russian assets to help his war-torn country.
At the summit, Sunak “will announce up to £242 million ($310 million) in bilateral assistance to Ukraine, to support immediate humanitarian, energy and stabilisation needs, and lay the foundations for longer-term” recovery, the prime minister’s office said in a statement Wednesday night.
“This funding demonstrates the UK’s continued international solidarity with Ukraine, and our flexibility in responding to immediate needs created by Russian aggression,” it added, noting recent Russian strikes on energy infrastructure.
The statement added that Sunak would work with other leaders at the G7 to find a way to use frozen Russian funds to assist Ukraine.
“We must be decisive and creative in our efforts to support Ukraine and end Putin’s illegal war at this critical moment,” Sunak was quoted as saying.