Latest news with #CoalitionOfTheWilling
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Zelensky, Albanese meet in Rome, discuss pressure on Russia
President Volodymyr Zelensky and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met in Rome on May 18 to discuss defense support for Ukraine, cooperation within the Coalition of the Willing, and increased pressure on Russia. The two leaders discussed specific that might pressure Russia to accept a ceasefire, as well as how to coordinate actions with international partners. During the meeting, Zelensky also expressed his gratitude to and the Australian people for their support of Ukraine. "It is a good thing that we have allies from different continents. Together we can truly bring the current situation closer to peace by exerting pressure on Russia. And we are very grateful for the sanctions," Zelensky . He also briefed Albanese on the recent in Istanbul between and , emphasizing that Russia is currently doing everything it can to prolong the . Defense support was also a key topic of discussion. Albanese confirmed that are on their way to Ukraine and noted that Australia's total has now reached $1.5 billion. "Russia's illegal aggression must be stopped, and we stand clearly and unequivocally on the side of Ukraine. Of course, we also call for peace and insist that it is Ukraine that should determine its future," Albanese emphasized. Zelensky and Albanese also discussed Australia's potential participation in the , as well as contributing to future for Ukraine once a just and lasting peace is achieved. Read also: Ukraine war latest: Russia launches record 273-drone attack on Ukraine ahead of planned Trump-Putin call We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Telegraph
18-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Starmer is kidding himself if he thinks cosying up to the EU will boost Britain
Monday sees a summit in London between the UK and the EU which could lead to what the British government terms 'an EU reset'. What should we expect? A good deal of what is going to be discussed concerns defence. The likely agreement here is largely going to be formalising the existing situation. Britain and France have been leading the attempt to establish a 'Coalition of the Willing' to support Ukraine. And it has been obvious for some time that with the US growing increasingly weary of paying for the defence of Europe, European countries, including the UK, are having to step up to the plate. Nevertheless, there is a potential economic benefit to the UK from a defence agreement. It seems likely that UK companies will be able to bid for and win defence contracts funded by the EU's €150bn (£126bn) defence scheme. This would undoubtedly be good news. But it is hardly a game changer. To put this apparently enormous sum into perspective, it represents about 4pc of the UK's GDP. So if British firms were able to win about 10pc of the contracts available, this would represent a total boost to UK demand of just under 0.5pc of our GDP. But this boost would be spread over a number of years so the impact on GDP in any one year is likely to be pretty small. The deal may also involve removing customs checks on British food exports into the EU, which would be a considerable boost to this sector. The downside, however, is that, once again, our fishermen are likely to be sold out by the British Government in order to secure a deal. Moreover, a removal of checks on British food exports to the EU is likely to come at a higher price, namely British agreement to so-called 'dynamic alignment'. This means adopting all new EU regulations with regard to the production and movement of food and food products. Making such an agreement would render it extremely difficult for the UK to forge a full Free Trade Agreement with the United States, since the treatment of US food exports has, all along, been one of the principle sticking points. Furthermore, if we were to agree to 'dynamic alignment' on foodstuffs, we could easily find ourselves pressured into adopting dynamic alignment with regard to all other forms of production and distribution. In that event, we would effectively be back inside the EU's regulatory ambit even though we were no longer a member of the bloc. This would be a betrayal of all those who voted for Brexit since the ability to fashion our own regulatory regime was one of the principle sources of potential gain from leaving the EU. This Government finds it difficult to understand that economic growth is forged by risk-taking businesses, not governments signing agreements and treaties and that over-regulation stifles business. You can see how the changing shape of international relations is pushing the UK closer to Europe in a number of spheres. But the economic urge to align more closely with the EU surely derives from the belief, widely held in the Government and the economic establishment, that Brexit has cost the UK dearly. The number that has somehow become lodged in the collective consciousness is a cost from Brexit to the UK of 4pc of GDP, even though this figure has not been satisfactorily established. Indeed, believing it requires quite a leap of faith. It is striking, for instance, that since Brexit, UK exports to the rest of the world have been just as weak as our exports to the EU. How can this be explained by Brexit? A more likely explanation is that UK exports in general have been damaged by some other factor, probably to do with the sectoral composition of British exports. As the trade expert Phil Radford recently explained in 'Less than Meets the Eye – the Real Impact of Brexit on UK Trade' (published by Policy Exchange), UK exports have been strongly affected by the weakness of its two largest goods export sectors: cars and aerospace. The aerospace industry was devastated by the impact of Covid-19 as orders for aircraft plunged, while the car industry has been going through a period of costly upheaval triggered by net zero. Moreover, Radford also points out the significance of the collapse in exports of clothing and footwear to the EU since our departure. Yet before the fall-off, our production in these sectors was extremely low. In fact, these 'exports' were in reality re-exports of goods that had been imported into the UK for re-export to the Continent, thereby adding virtually nothing to the UK's GDP. This is not to say that I think Brexit has brought the UK decided economic benefits so far. On the contrary, I always thought it likely that there would be some short-term economic loss inflicted by Brexit. And there probably has been – although its quantification is extremely difficult and I suspect the figure of 4pc is much too high. But it must be remembered that Brexit was a once in a generation event. And we only formally left the EU on January 1, 2021, not yet even five years ago. It is really rather early to be attempting an overall assessment, particularly since the political, economic and military scene on the Continent is so uncertain. The UK Government is right to be trying to improve our relations with our close neighbours on defence and related matters. But it must not kid itself into believing that on economic matters the EU is the future. In economic matters, it remains a laggard, dogged by over-regulation, high taxes and out-of-control welfare spending, all of which we should ourselves be trying to escape from. Most importantly, however difficult it may be to do business with Donald Trump's administration, it needs to be remembered that America will still be there long after Trump has left the White House.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Readout - Prime Minister Carney participates in virtual meeting in support of Ukraine
OTTAWA, ON, May 10, 2025 /CNW/ - Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, participated in a virtual meeting of the Coalition of the Willing. The Coalition discussed ongoing efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and underlined their steadfast support for Ukraine's long-term security. They committed to ensuring Ukraine's ability to deter future Russian aggression and to continue exerting economic pressure on Russia. The leaders reaffirmed their support for U.S.-led peace efforts and the proposal of an unconditional 30-day ceasefire. If Russia chooses to reject or delay the ceasefire, the leaders will pursue further and stronger sanctions. The meeting was hosted by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, co-chaired by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Sir Keir Starmer, and the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, and attended by many of Canada's closest Allies and partners. Associated Links Canada-Ukraine relations Canada's response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine This document is also available at SOURCE Prime Minister's Office View original content: Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Starmer and Macron reject Russian demands regarding ceasefire: no preconditions
The coalition of the willing has rejected Russia's demand that Western countries halt arms supplies to Ukraine as a condition for a ceasefire, stressing the need for a 30-day ceasefire without preconditions. Source: UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron at a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing in Kyiv, as reported by European Pravda with reference to Interfax-Ukraine Quote from Starmer: "Putin has in the last few hours sought to put conditions on a ceasefire. It's really important that we make clear that an unconditional ceasefire is a ceasefire without conditions, and we reject the imposition of conditions." Quote from Macron: "It means an unconditional ceasefire in the sky, on land and at sea, that should be long enough and that could be renewable. It should be completed with appropriate provisions for monitoring and with arrangements for the distancing of forces along the line of control [...] with the assistance of all those who want to join." We firmly reject the possibility of making any concessions [...]. And there is no precondition: neither stopping the delivery of arms [...] or any prejudging of any type of negotiation. And we have to be clear that if Russia does not comply, it must face consequences, with additional sanctions and further support for Ukraine." Background: Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia would demand the cessation of US and European arms supplies to Ukraine during any potential ceasefire. Following the summit on 10 May, the coalition of the willing demanded that Russia agree to an unconditional ceasefire for 30 days starting 12 May. The EU and the US plan to ramp up sanctions against Russia if Putin refuses to comply with the ceasefire. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Japanese PM calls on Russia to take constructive action on ceasefire
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has called on Russia to take constructive action to bring about a comprehensive ceasefire and secure a just and lasting peace. Source: Embassy of Japan in Ukraine on X Quote: "Prime Minister of Japan Shigeru Ishiba has published a written address to the 'Virtual Meeting of the Leaders of the Coalition of the Willing on Ukraine', organised today by the United Kingdom and France with the participation of President Zelenskyy. In his address, Ishiba strongly urges Russia to take constructive steps towards a comprehensive ceasefire and a just and lasting peace." Details: The embassy noted that since the peace to be achieved in Ukraine could impact global security, the Japanese prime minister has emphasised the need for international cooperation and reaffirmed Japan's readiness to contribute further to strengthening Ukraine's economic and social stability. He also expressed his "firm hope" that the 10 May meeting of the coalition of the willing will mark another step towards the ultimate goal of a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. Background: Following their summit on 10 May, the coalition of the willing has demanded that Russia agree to an unconditional ceasefire for 30 days starting 12 May. The EU and the US plan to tighten sanctions against Russia if Putin rejects the ceasefire. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
