British Prime Minister Sunak announced on Saturday that the UK will become the first country to provide Ukraine with long-range weapons. Sunak urged for the establishment of “NATO standard capabilities” for Ukraine, as he believes it needs “a decisive advantage on the battlefield” to defeat Russia and secure its future. He cited the provision of UK tanks and the training of Ukrainian pilots to fly NATO-standard fighter jets as examples of Britain’s efforts. Sunak added that the UK and its allies are delivering as much equipment in the next few months as they will in all of 2022.
He also called on NATO to create a “new charter” to protect Ukraine from future Russian aggression, as he believes the existing security architecture has failed. Sunak said the world must hold Russia accountable, including bringing it to the International Criminal Court over war crimes and discussing how to ensure Russia contributes to the reconstruction of Ukraine.
The U.S. Biden administration officially determined last March that Russian troops had committed war crimes in Ukraine. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday that the White House has formally concluded that Russia committed “crimes against humanity” in Ukraine. Harris cited “execution-style killings, beatings, and electrocution” as examples of these war crimes.