UK's Lammy sees no Russian appetite for peace

21/2/2025 6:22

British Foreign

Minister David Lammy said on Thursday he saw no appetite from

Russia for peace with Ukraine after listening to his Russian

counterpart Sergei Lavrov talk at a closed-door meeting of the

top G20 diplomats in South Africa.



Lammy was speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a meeting

of foreign ministers from the world's biggest economies, which

has been overshadowed by dispute between members over the

Ukraine war, among other disagreements.



"We have not got anywhere near a negotiated settlement," he

said, responding to a question about whether Britain would under

any circumstances support deploying peacekeepers to Ukraine in

the absence of security guarantees from the United States.



"And I have to say, when I listen to what the Russians and

what Lavrov has just said in the chamber this afternoon, I don't

see an appetite to really get to that peace," he said.



British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said at a meeting of

European leaders in Paris on Monday that a U.S. security

commitment was the only way to ensure lasting peace in Ukraine,

and it was too early to say how many British peacekeeping troops

he might send.



European leaders discussed but did not agree on deploying

peacekeepers at that meeting, but pledged to boost their defence

capabilities, as the Trump administration increasingly appears

to adopt the Kremlin's line on Ukraine.



"This is a critical moment, it's essential for Europe to

increase...defence spending to step up our commitment to our own

defences across Europe," Lammy said, reiterating a British

target of spending 2.5% of GDP on it, and a pledge of aid to

Ukraine.



"We're committed to giving Ukraine 3 billion a year for as

long as it lasts," he said.



Trump stunned European allies last week by calling Russian

leader Vladimir Putin to discuss ending the war without first

consulting Ukraine or them.



"We look forward to speaking to President Trump more about

this (Ukraine talks). We're very, very clear there must be a

role for Ukraine, it must be at the heart of these

negotiations," Lammy said.