Ukraine

With your permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I will make a statement on the latest situation in Ukraine, on the recent strikes against Kyiv, on our continuing support for Ukraine, on our response to continuing Russian aggression, and on a major new package of sanctions against Russian oil and gas that I am announcing today. It is a pleasure to do so on the same day we have welcomed Ruslan Stefanchuk, the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, to the House of Commons—a sign of our strong and continued friendship.

It is a reflection of the importance of Ukraine’s security to the Government and to all of us here in the UK that my first statement to the House from the Dispatch Box as Foreign Secretary is on Ukraine, just as Ukraine was my first visit when taking up the role a month ago. Let me also thank and pay tribute to my predecessor in this role—the Deputy Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Tottenham (Mr Lammy)—for his work in representing our country on the world stage with great principle and distinction, and in showing such strong and continued leadership in supporting Ukraine.

Three and a half years after Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, President Putin has failed in his war aims. He is failing on his military objectives, on the economy and on his political objectives for both Ukraine and Europe, thanks to the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian people and the support and determination of Ukraine’s friends. As Ukraine stands firm against Russia, the UK stands firm with Ukraine. Ukraine’s security is Europe’s security, and the security and stability of the whole of Europe is vital for our security here in the UK. President Zelensky stands ready to hold talks for peace, but President Putin seeks only to escalate war. He will not succeed.

Now is the time not just to continue with our steadfast support for Ukraine’s defence, but to substantially increase the pressure on Russia’s economy and on Putin’s war machine. Major new UK sanctions against Russia’s biggest oil companies and shadow fleet and new concerted actions with our partners will choke off oil and gas revenues and hit at the heart of Putin’s economy and war machine. We are determined to support our Ukrainian friends and to stand up for our own security.

What was clear to me in Kyiv a few weeks ago, and what is clear to everyone visiting Ukraine, is the enduring courage and unbreakable spirit of the Ukrainian people. I saw at first hand the damage from an Iskander missile on Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers building just 10 days after the British Council offices were also damaged. I met families whose lives had been uprooted, their homes destroyed and their children’s education torn apart. I also met up with two teenagers who lived with us in Castleford during the first year of the war and who have now returned. Despite the drones, the bombardments and the disruption to their lives and their schooling, they continue to train as international standard ballroom dancers. Like Ukrainians across their country, they will not let Russia destroy their dreams.

That is what Vladimir Putin will never understand about the Ukrainian people. For three and a half years—indeed, since 2014—he has questioned their resilience. For three and a half years, he has doubted the commitment of their allies. For three and a half years, he has been proven wrong. Everywhere I went in Kyiv last month, I saw a nation resolute in its fight.

Despite the huge Russian mobilisation efforts in the last three years, Putin remains as far away from achieving those military goals as he has ever been. In this war that Putin started, Russian losses are now 20 times higher than Soviet losses in Afghanistan. In this war that Putin continues to pursue, Russia is now struggling to equip its forces. In some areas, stocks are so low that they have resorted to using military kit from the 1950s. As a result of this war that Putin refuses to end, the International Monetary Fund has revised down Russian growth forecasts and military spending now outstrips social spending for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

We know, however, that with increased desperation comes increased danger. In recent weeks, Putin has engaged in provocative and reckless violations of NATO airspace in Estonia, Poland and Romania, and NATO stands together against that action, resolute and ready to act. His recent bombardment of Ukraine has seen some of the largest attacks in Europe since the height of the second world war. Civilian casualties have risen nearly 40%, with children killed in playgrounds, hospitals and schools destroyed, and civilian energy infrastructure targeted. Just yesterday, a UN aid convoy was hit delivering vital assistance to a frontline community.

While we continue to strive for peace in Ukraine, we must be steeled for the war to continue, and that means focusing on four priorities. First, we will ensure that Ukraine gets the support it needs to stand up to this latest onslaught. In my meetings with President Zelensky and Foreign Minister Sybiha in September, I reaffirmed the UK’s ironclad support. We are providing £4.5 billion of military support for Ukraine this year—more than ever before—with over £150 million-worth of air defence and artillery delivered in the last two months alone. We have used our co-chairmanship of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group to galvanise partners, raising over £2 billion through the UK-run International Fund for Ukraine to support the most urgent military needs. During that Kyiv visit, I announced £142 million in UK aid to support Ukraine through the winter and into next year. That will include our largest emergency energy support package since the start of the war to restore and repair water, heating and electricity systems.

Secondly, we will ramp up the pressure on Russia to ensure that their escalation comes at a clear cost. I am today setting out a further and new set of sanctions—among our strongest so far—to tighten the pressure on Russia’s economy. This will be the second set of sanctions I have announced in a month and I am ready to go further still. This will take the total UK-imposed sanctions on Russia-related individuals and entities to over 2,900.

At the UN Security Council last month, I told Foreign Minister Lavrov directly, shortly before he walked out of the chamber, that

“we will target your ailing economy, your oil and gas revenues…the defence industry making your munitions, because we know for Russia, the price of war is piling up.”

With immediate effect, we are sanctioning Russia’s two largest oil producers, Rosneft and Lukoil, the two biggest Russian energy firms ever targeted by UK sanctions. That is part of an extensive new sanctions package of 90 targets that include refineries around the world that are responsible for importing Russian oil, suppliers of drone and missile components and 44 shadow fleet vessels, further disrupting the network of tankers that transport Russia’s oil.

The UK has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other partner, taking billions of dollars-worth of Russian oil off the market. We are sanctioning not just Russian individuals and companies, but organisations in third countries that continue to support the Russian war effort with all the damaging consequences not just for Ukraine but for Europe’s stability. The sanctions stop UK businesses and individuals from trading or transacting with the actors that we have targeted. Importantly, we are also strengthening our co-ordination with the EU, which is finalising a new wave of sanctions. We urge countries across the world to go further, working with us in targeting Russian oil and gas.

President Zelensky has made clear in recent months that he supports a full, unconditional ceasefire and is ready to meet Putin for talks to achieve a just and lasting peace. President Trump has urged peace and ceasefire talks. Instead, President Putin seeks only to escalate the conflict. That is why this co-ordinated economic pressure is so urgent and important to get him to change course.

Thirdly, we will ensure that Ukraine gets the financial support it needs to recover and that Russia is the one to pay. The whole House will be aware of Ukraine’s acute financing needs, both now and in the long term, so we are pushing at every level to ensure that frozen Russian assets can be used to meet those needs. They were on the agenda of the G7 Finance Ministers when they met on 1 October, and the Chancellor is in Washington today, again pressing for progress with her counterparts, as I have done directly with our European partners. We will continue to argue that the full value of Russian sovereign assets must be used to support Ukraine. The EU has developed a proposal for reparations loans for Ukraine, which we welcome. The Prime Minister discussed this with Chancellor Merz and President Macron on Friday, and we expect and hope that further progress will be made in the coming weeks.

Finally, while we are prepared for this war to continue, we must also keep working and preparing for peace. We have seen in recent days what is possible when the international community builds a consensus for peace. We know too the huge international co-ordination that has come behind the US peace initiative in the Middle East and the huge international effort that will be needed to ensure it is implemented. Those same principles on international co-ordination and effort over time are important for Ukraine. That is why, together with France, the UK Government has convened over 30 countries in several meetings of the coalition of the willing, encouraging contributions towards a multinational force that would stand ready to deploy to Ukraine upon a ceasefire or peace agreement to help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces so that Russia is never able to attack again. We are also implementing the 100-year partnership signed by the Prime Minister and President Zelensky in January, making real our commitment to stand with Ukraine not just today or tomorrow, but over many decades to come.

While Ukraine continues to show its endless reserves of strength, Vladimir Putin continues to show his endless depths of depravity. Time and again he has shown his willingness to threaten the security and sovereignty of other nations, to threaten democracy and undermine the world order and to kidnap tens of thousands of children. From cyber-attacks in Moldova to the deployment of mercenaries in the Sahel, Russia’s actions seek to topple Governments, fuel conflict and spread instability far beyond Europe’s borders. That is why the UK continues to support Ukraine—not just to help brave people to defend themselves, but to make clear that aggression does not pay and that Putin does not win, that force will be resisted with strength and that criminals will be held accountable. Ukraine’s security is our security, and I commend this statement to the House.

Order. As the Foreign Secretary, with prior agreement with the Chair, was allowed to speak a little while longer than the allocated time, the same will be allowed to those on the Opposition Front Benches. I call the shadow Foreign Secretary.

I am grateful to the Foreign Secretary for giving me advance sight of her statement. I would also like to welcome her to her place in her new role. We meet again at the Dispatch Box; we have shadowed each other in many roles, and this time around it feels like she is following me in this portfolio.

On the occasion of the visit of the Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament to our Parliament, it is right that Britain should stand with Ukraine on what will soon be the eve of the fourth winter of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. Putin’s relentless efforts to obtain the territory of a sovereign European state by barbaric levels of force have undermined peace in Europe and the established international order. In recent months, we have seen European and NATO airspace brazenly and deliberately violated by Russian fighter jets. From Poland to Estonia to Romania, such aggressive provocation must yield stronger deterrence against Russia.

The same applies to the intensified aerial bombardment of Kyiv. The hundreds upon hundreds of Iranian Shahed drones attacking civilians represent a cruel attempt by Putin to psychologically torture Ukrainians, but the bombing will not break their resolve. From Russia’s kidnapping of Ukrainian children to the daily bombardment of propaganda and bombs, Britain must stand firm to level the playing field for Ukraine so that it can repel those attacks. We must continually refuel our country’s ability to support Ukraine, and never stand still.

Is the Foreign Secretary brokering more packages, here at home or across NATO, to support Ukraine’s air defence? The 100-year partnership agreement with Ukraine must be leveraged to support innovation in defence technology and production within Ukraine right now, while we also learn from Ukraine’s successes in these fields. The way the Ukrainian people have conducted themselves and continued to fight for what is rightfully theirs in the face of the barbarity and savagery that many of us thought was confined to a bygone era will go down in history. We must ensure that Russia’s defeat goes down in history, too. To do that, Britain must lead all allies to raise the price of Russia’s aggression by cutting off Russia’s financial lifelines, which continue to fund Putin’s war in Ukraine and fight against our democratic values.

I welcome the shadow Foreign Secretary’s response, and I am glad to face her across the Dispatch Box again. I think she and I have probably missed each other. This time round, we agree on some things, which is perhaps a new experience for both of us.

I checked, and I think that the last time the right hon. Lady and I were opposite each other—although we were on the opposite sides of the House then—was on 5 September 2022, the day that Liz Truss was confirmed as Prime Minister. It was perhaps not quite such a good day for the right hon. Lady, who then lost her place as Home Secretary. It was also not such a good time for the country.

Interestingly, after our exchanges on that day, the next discussion was on Ukraine. My right hon. Friend the Member for Rawmarsh and Conisbrough (John Healey), now the Defence Secretary, speaking from the Opposition Benches, began his remarks by observing that it was day 194 of a war that Vladimir Putin had expected to be over inside a week. He saluted the bravery of the Ukrainian resistance and pledged the Labour party’s full backing for every aspect of what the right hon. Lady’s Government were doing at the time. Now here we are on day 1,330, and all of us in this House are still full of admiration and respect for the Ukrainian resistance, and determined to support Ukraine in the face of the continuing Russian onslaught.

I welcome the continuation of the shadow Foreign Secretary’s cross-party support for the Ukrainian people, for the actions that we need to continue to take to support Ukraine in its defence, and for the pressure that we need to exert. I can assure her that we will continue to support Ukraine’s defences, and to look at what more we can do. The Defence Secretary has also set out new partnerships; in particular, we are working with Ukraine on developing new drone technology, learning from its technological experiences, and helping it with production.

I call the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

I begin by publicly welcoming the Foreign Secretary to her new post, and by echoing her comments about the previous Foreign Secretary. I also welcome her commitment to finally using the Russian frozen assets. I hope that the situation will be resolved soon, because those assets are needed for the defence and reconstruction of Ukraine.

I am pleased to see that the Foreign Secretary is going to take further advantage of Britain’s unique sanctions regime by extending it against Russian individuals and companies, but she knows—perhaps better than most, given her previous experience—that a regime is only as good as its enforcement, and there are times when doors need to be kicked down. It worries me that officials from the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation told the Treasury Committee a year ago that they had issued only one £15,000 fine against a British business for engaging with a sanctioned individual. How many British businesses have faced financial penalties for direct or indirect breaches of sanctions on Russia or the Russian state since then, and what has been the value of those fines?

I welcome the point that the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee has raised, and I thank her for her considerable work and expertise, and thank the Committee for its work in this area. As she will know, the Foreign Office sets out the framework for sanctions and then works with the Treasury on enforcement. Following the publication of the cross-Government review on enforcement in May, the Government are committing to stronger action to make compliance easier, but also to deter non-compliance, and to ensuring proper enforcement.

I am advised that so far in 2025, Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation penalties have totalled over £900,000, and there has been a £1.1 million compound settlement with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. In April, the National Crime Agency secured the first convictions for breaches of Russian financial sanctions, but I am happy to work with the Chancellor to ensure that my right hon. Friend has any further information that she wants on that topic.

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

I thank the Foreign Secretary for advance sight of her statement. I warmly welcome the announcement of fresh sanctions aimed at cutting Putin’s oil and gas profits. It is vital that we make use of all the tools at our disposal to undermine his war machine, and we know that oil and gas revenues are primarily used to fund it. These measures are a further step in the right direction, but I encourage the Government to go even further.

Analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air think-tank shows that UK-owned or insured liquefied natural gas carriers have facilitated the transport of £45 billion of Russian gas since the start of the full-scale invasion. That means that 76% of the total export value of Russian LNG was carried on UK-owned or insured vessels. It is unconscionable that UK businesses are still contributing to Putin’s coffers, so will the Foreign Secretary commit to banning the provision of maritime services, including transport and insurance, for Russian gas? Will she engage directly with the maritime insurance sector, a large proportion of which is based in the UK, to find practical ways to implement such a ban?

I was very pleased to hear of the Foreign Secretary’s ambition to progress plans to use the full value of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine’s war effort. That is a measure that the Liberal Democrats have been pushing for action on for some months. The Government need to move at pace as Ukraine continues to face Putin’s relentless assault, so can the Foreign Secretary confirm the timetable she is looking at for new funds becoming available from frozen assets? Can she outline how those funds will be allocated, and if barriers to seizing those assets are put in place internationally, can she commit to the UK Government acting unilaterally when it comes to seizing the assets held in the UK?

It is more than three years since Roman Abramovich sold Chelsea football club. In June, the then Foreign Secretary said that the Government were ready and willing to take legal action to finally secure the £2.5 billion generated from the sale that is earmarked for additional support for Ukraine. It appears, however, that the Government’s bark has been worse than their bite so far, as we have heard no more about how the Government intend to pursue those assets. What concrete action have the Government taken since June to secure them?

I thank the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for his questions and his continued support for Ukraine. We are determined to tighten the restrictions much further, not simply on the oil and gas companies, although this is the first time we have sanctioned these major companies, but on the distribution networks and those who continue to profit. On 12 September, I announced 100 new sanctions, including on 70 more ships in the shadow fleet. Today, in the second sanctions package that I have announced since being appointed, I have announced sanctions on a further 44 shadow fleet ships, because we are clear that the shadow fleet is undermining the impact of the sanctions that we have set out.

On Russian sovereign assets, if what we do is to have a proper impact, both on Russia and on the market, it is right that we should work alongside partners, and we welcome the statements from President von der Leyen and the G7 Finance Ministers. I can tell the hon. Gentleman that this is a huge priority for me and for the Chancellor, who is pursuing those exact issues about timetables, and about the final steps we need to take around Russian sovereign assets in Washington today.

The issue of the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea football club is a priority for me personally. We must ensure that those proceeds can reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine, following Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion. I am deeply frustrated that that has not been possible so far, but we are fully prepared to pursue this matter through the courts if required, while the door for negotiations remains open. Again, I have discussed this matter not just with the Chancellor, but internationally.

I thank the Speaker, the Speaker’s Office and the Deputy Speakers for the gracious welcome they today gave Ruslan Stefanchuk, the Speaker of the Rada. Also, seeing the Foreign Secretary in Kyiv on her first foreign visit was a real fillip for the people of Ukraine.

I thank the Foreign Secretary for the sanctions package, but I would like to ask further questions about the seizure of Russian assets. I am pleased that we are ready to progress the seizure of Russian assets, and that we have announced work with France and Germany, but are we working at pace with our allies to ensure the seizure of Russian assets? Ukrainians know that their best chance of winning this war will come from the move from freezing to seizing assets. Will the United Kingdom provide finance for the reparations loan that the EU proposes?

I thank my hon. Friend for his continued work for many years on Ukraine. It was certainly very good to see him at the event in Kyiv. I can assure him that we think that the new mechanism that the EU has drawn up and provided to mobilise effectively the assets that are being held is really important. We support that work, and we believe that we, the EU and other allies should try to make rapid progress now, because ultimately, the rebuilding of Ukraine and support for Ukraine should be paid for by Russia.

I welcome the Foreign Secretary to her new role and commend her on a very strong statement. I welcome the progress being made by the G7 Finance Ministers in DC on seizing Russian state assets. It is an issue I first started working on three years ago, and I know the Chancellor has continued that work. Because of that, there is a body of clear technical analysis that has been done in the Treasury that I think shows clearly at this point, first, that there is a sound legal basis for taking these assets and using them; secondly, that there is now a practical way to use them, especially as the bonds have matured into cash; and thirdly, that by acting in concert with allies, any risk to financial stability can be absolutely minimised. I urge the Foreign Secretary to show continued UK leadership on this issue, as I know she is, especially sharing that work with our European allies, because I know she would agree that this is an urgent issue that requires action.

I welcome all the points made by the former Prime Minister. I pay tribute to the work he did both as Chancellor and as Prime Minister to support Ukraine and the defence of Ukraine—in particular this work around Russian sovereign assets, as well as finding different ways to ensure that market stability remains and that we have the proper financial safeguards in place, while also ensuring that the money can get to Ukraine. I have spoken to colleagues in Belgium and France over the last week. As the right hon. Member will know, the Prime Minister has discussed this with French and German counterparts in the last week as well. We will continue to press on every avenue to make the progress that he talks about.

I welcome my right hon. Friend to her place and I welcome her statement. In September, the Yale School of Public Health Humanitarian Research Lab revealed that the number of facilities that Russia is using in its forced deportation of Ukrainian children has risen from 53 to 210. That report highlighted that 110 facilities were being used to re-educate children, and that at 39 of those facilities military training was being provided to train Ukrainian children to throw the grenades and pilot the drones that are destroying their homes and killing their families. Could my right hon. Friend outline what further steps are being taken to relocate, rescue and return those children to their families?

I welcome my hon. Friend’s point. The forcible deportation—the kidnapping—of almost 20,000 Ukrainian children by Russia is one of the most disturbing aspects of this war. I agree with my hon. Friend about the importance of supporting those families. We have been supporting organisations such as Bring Kids Back UA and Save Ukraine, which are supporting efforts to return Ukrainian children. Just two weeks ago, Baroness Harman attended the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children event at the UN General Assembly. We will continue to do all we can to support the return of those children.

I call the Father of the House.