LONDON - Britain will announce an immediate surge of military deliveries to Ukraine to help it fend off an intensifying Russian offensive, and has pledged to train its pilots as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on a rare visit abroad.

London was Mr Zelensky’s first stop on his second trip abroad since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb 24, 2022, after a visit to the United States in December. He was due to move on to Paris on Wednesday and travel to Brussels on Thursday, where the European Union is holding a summit.

Addressing British lawmakers in Westminster on Wednesday, Mr Zelensky said a victory for Ukraine against Russia would change the world and deter future aggressors.

“The victory will change the world and this will be a change that the world has long needed,” he said.

Britain, which has been working with Ukrainian troops, said the extra training would ensure Ukrainian pilots were able to fly “sophisticated Nato-standard fighter jets in the future”, adding that it was “part of long-term investment in their military”.

The wording seemed to suggest that Britain had not yet changed its mind on whether to immediately provide Kyiv with the fighter jets it has asked for – something the government has said is not the right approach for now.

Mr Sunak said the visit was a testament to Ukraine’s “courage, determination and fight and... to the unbreakable friendship between our two countries”.

“I am proud that today we will expand that training from soldiers to marines and fighter jet pilots, ensuring Ukraine has a military able to defend its interests well into the future.”

Mr Zelensky will meet King Charles later on Wednesday, a spokesman for Buckingham Palace said. King Charles, who has visited several organisations that help Ukrainians in Britain, has called Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a “brutal aggression”.

Britain also set out further sanctions to target those who have helped Russian President Vladimir Putin, including manufacturers of military equipment and eight individuals who helped “maintain wealth and power among Kremlin elites”.

Russia readies new assault

Mr Zelensky, who had close ties with former prime minister Boris Johnson, visits Britain at a time when Russia is bringing tens of thousands of recently mobilised troops to the battlefield to try to break through Ukrainian defences in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine’s allies have promised hundreds of tanks and armoured vehicles to help Kyiv resist the assault and recapture territory, but have said it will take time to train Ukrainian forces to use them effectively.

Following Mr Johnson’s resignation last year, Mr Sunak has pledged to continue to support Ukraine, visiting Kyiv in November to tell the Ukrainian leader: “We are with you all the way.”

In London, he is expected to tell Mr Zelensky he will accelerate the delivery of military equipment to Ukraine.

Britain has trained 10,000 Ukrainian troops to battle-readiness in the last six months and will train a further 20,000 soldiers this year, the government said in a statement.

Last week, Ukrainian troops arrived in Britain to learn how to command Challenger 2 tanks, and Mr Sunak will offer to provide Ukraine with longer-range capabilities, the statement said.

But London has so far refused to deliver fighter jets, saying it was not “the right approach” for now. However, defence minister Ben Wallace has suggested that stance could change.

Mr Sunak’s spokesman said last week that the quickest a pilot could learn to fly a British fighter jet was 35 months. “We will continue listening to the Ukrainians and consider what is right for the long term,” he said. REUTERS