UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham arrived in Kyiv on Monday, marking his first overseas trip since taking office. The visit coincides with Ukraine's Independence Day, as reported by infohub.kz.
In Kyiv, Burnham is expected to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and co-chair a meeting of the so-called "coalition of the willing" alongside other international leaders. Other European leaders also arrived in the capital, including European Council President Antonio Costa, Moldovan President Maia Sandu, Luxembourg Prime Minister Luc Frieden, and Estonian President Alar Karis.
According to Burnham's office, he is expected to announce that the UK government has agreed to allow defense company MBDA to release classified information relating to British components used in the SCALP long-range missile. This would pave the way for France and Ukraine to advance plans for local production of the weapon in Ukraine.
SCALP is the French version of the UK's Storm Shadow missile, with both systems incorporating shared French and British technology. Burnham is also expected to take part in Independence Day commemorations and discuss continued international support for Ukraine during the coalition of the willing meeting.
Ukraine marks 35 years of independence this year following the collapse of the Soviet Union.