The meeting at Downing Street between Volodymyr Zelensky and the leaders of his country’s principal allies in Europe is designed to demonstrate, both to Mr Zelensky and the wider world, that the Ukrainian people are not alone in their struggle for freedom. Specifically, it is a reminder to the Americans and the Russians that there can be no lasting peace settlement without the freely given consent of Ukraine.
The prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, is joint leader of the “coalition of the willing” with President Macron, Europe’s pre-eminent military and nuclear powers, while the chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz, is at the helm of its largest economy, and one that remains a formidable industrial player.
