British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke Thursday, discussing military support and global food security, a Downing Street spokesperson said in a statement.
“The leaders discussed progress in negotiations and agreed to step up work with allies, including the US, France and Germany, to define the longer-term security architecture for Ukraine,” the spokesperson said.
In the call with Zelensky, Johnson raised concerns “about the growing global fallout from Russia’s illegal invasion and President Putin’s craven and reckless blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, including rising food prices in developing countries,” according to the statement.
Earlier Thursday, the World Food Programme Executive Director David Beasley said that a "failure to open the ports will be a declaration of war on global food security," bringing millions of people to the brink of starvation.
Johnson “set out the support flowing to Ukraine’s defence, including long-range artillery, shore-to-ship missiles and unmanned drones,” following the UK’s decision to provide an additional 1.3 billion euros in military support to Ukraine earlier this month.