UK's Cleverly visits US and Canada to galvanise support for Ukraine

Foreign secretary will meet senior ministers in Washington to call for further support for Ukraine

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly is travelling to the US to drum up more donations of weapons for Ukraine. Reuters

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly is seeking to strengthen support for Ukraine in its struggle against Russia’s invasion by holding supply talks in Washington.

Mr Cleverly has a meeting planned with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday before travelling to Toronto for a meeting on Wednesday with his Canadian counterpart, Melanie Joly.

The foreign secretary will use his visit to urge the allies to go “further and faster” in their support for the government in Kyiv, arguing that, with the right equipment, the Ukrainians can prevail against Russia.

His intervention comes after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced at the weekend that the UK is to become the first nation to supply Ukraine with modern western heavy tanks – a main demand of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Britain will send 14 Challenger 2 main battle tanks, to be followed by about 30 AS90 self-propelled guns – a decision which, the Ukrainians hope, will unlock similar offers of support from other Nato allies.

Poland has offered to provide a company of German-built Leopard 2 battle tanks but, because they were imported from Germany, it would have to be signed off by Berlin before they can be re-exported.

Drones and weapons supplied to Ukraine - in pictures

Turkeysold its Bayraktar TB2 armed drones to Ukraine. They can fly at an altitude of 7,500 metres and swoop down to attack targets. AFP

The US also gave 700 of its Switchblade kamikaze drones. AP

Cheap commercial drones like the DJI Mavic series have been modified in Ukraine. AFP

Germany will follow the US in providing a Patriot missile defence system, pictured above, to Ukraine. Reuters

FIM-92 Stinger rockets have been donated to help Ukrainian infantry engage aircraft and drones. The shoulder-launched missiles can shoot down aircraft. Photo: US Army

Germany donated 25 Flakpanzer Gepard all-weather-capable self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. AFP

The High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or Himars, can simultaneously launch several precision-guided missiles. The US has given Ukraine projectiles with a range of about 130 kilometres. EPA

M777 howitzers and about 300,000 shells have been donated to give Ukraine an accurate artillery platform with a range of 50 kilometres. EPA

Ukraine has been sent at least 5,000 of the anti-tank weapons known as NLAWs. These shoulder-launched rockets have proved deadly in the field. PA

Ukrainian troops have also received thousands of Javelin anti-tank missiles. Bloomberg

Poland and the Czech Republic sent Russian-made T72 tanks, which Ukraine has used for decades, to ease integration and cut down training time. EPA

France as announced its plan to give AMX-10 RC “scout tanks” to Ukraine. "This is the first time that western-made armoured vehicles are being delivered in support of the Ukrainian army," a French official said. AFP

Shortly after the French, the US said it would send Bradley fighting vehicles to provide "a level of firepower and armour that would bring advantages on the battlefield”. Reuters

The UK sent their phased-out Saxon armoured vehicles. They found new life protecting infantry units in transit and dealing with tough off-road conditions. Getty Images

Denmark has supplied Harpoon anti-ship launchers to help Ukraine defend its coasts. AFP

The US sent 20 Soviet and Russian made Mi-17 helicopters to Ukraine that had initially been bought for the Afghan government in 2010. AP

Germany has also supplied its latest version of the IRIS-T air defence system designed to shoot down missiles at altitudes up to 20 kilometres. Getty Images

Ukraine has also been given thousands of small arms, bullet proof vests, medical kits, litres of fuel, granades and other weapons systems. Reuters

“The UK, US and Canada always have each other’s backs when it counts, protecting the rules-based order for nearly 80 years," Mr Cleverly said in a statement before he went to the US.

“Today we stand united against (Vladimir) Putin’s illegal war, and we will continue to use our uniquely strong defence and security ties to ensure that, in the end, the Ukrainian people will win.”

On Tuesday, the UK government also announced that it is sending more medical supplies to Ukraine.

More than 70 pallets of bandages, crutches, wheelchairs, and other items will be donated to UK-Med, a frontline medical NGO.

The donation also includes tents to be used for temporary treatment centres, about 80 beds, more than 30,000 gowns, aprons, bandages, needles, and other medical equipment.

Russia and Ukraine conflict latest - in pictures

A tank, seen left, fires a round in Soledar, a town in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine. Reuters

Tank fire in Soledar, Donetsk. Reuters

Firefighters work to put out a blaze at a Kharkiv fireworks storage site after it was struck by a Russian missile. Getty

Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of Ukraine's ground forces, visits his troops on the frontline in Soledar, Donetsk. Reuters

A Ukrainian flag attached to a tank flutters in the wind in Bakhmut. Reuters

A specialist from an emergency crew works on a residential building in Donetsk that was damaged in recent shelling. Reuters

A missile fragment left by shelling in Russian-controlled Donetsk. AP

Residents remove debris and carry their belongings out of a building destroyed by recent shelling in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine. Reuters

Ukrainian forces fire an anti-aircraft weapon as Russia's attack on the frontline city of Bakhmut continues. Reuters

A car drives past a destroyed building purported to have been used as temporary accommodation for Russian soldiers, dozens of whom were killed in a Ukrainian missile strike in Makiivka, Russian-controlled Ukraine. Reuters

The site of a temporary barracks for Russian soldiers in Makiivka, which was destroyed in a Ukrainian missile attack. Reuters

A Ukrainian serviceman carries his injured comrade from the battlefield to a hospital in the Donetsk region. AP

Smoke rises after shelling in Soledar, the site of heavy battles with Russian forces in the Donetsk region. AP

“Putin’s brutal bombardment of civilians and infrastructure across Ukraine is continuing to have a massive human cost," said Mr Cleverly.

“This latest UK donation will help ensure medics on the frontline can continue to provide life-saving medical support to those caught in the conflict.”

The UK has previously donated equipment and pharmaceutical supplies to UK-Med, in addition to £300,000 ($366,000) funding, to set up mobile health clinics and help train Ukrainian doctors, nurses and paramedics on how to deal with mass casualties.

This latest donation builds on that work, to support the most vulnerable civilians remaining in Ukraine.