Speaking ahead of the G20 summit today, the Prime Minister said
“Today, Ukraine’s friends and partners will meet in the margins of the G20 summit to discuss how we can secure a full ceasefire and create the space for meaningful peace negotiations. We will discuss the current proposal on the table, and in support of President Trump’s push for peace, look at how we can strengthen this plan for the next phase of negotiations.
“There is only one country around the G20 table that is not calling for a ceasefire, and one country that is deploying a barrage of drones and missiles to destroy livelihoods and murder innocent civilians.
“Time and again, Russia pretends to be serious about peace, but their actions never live up to their words. This week, we have seen almost 1000 Russian drones and 54 precision guided missiles sent into Ukraine, maiming innocent people, including children and the elderly going about their everyday lives.
“No one wants peace more than the Ukrainian people. Not a day has passed in this war where Ukraine hasn’t called for Russia to end its illegal invasion, roll back its tanks and lay down its guns.
“Ukraine has been ready to negotiate for months, while Russia has stalled and continued its murderous rampage. That is why we must all work together, with both the US and Ukraine, to secure a just and lasting peace once and for all. We will continue to coordinate closely with Washington and Kyiv to achieve that.
“However, we cannot simply wait for peace, we must strain every sinew to secure it. We must cut off Putin’s finance flows by ending our reliance on Russian gas. It won’t be easy, but it’s the right thing to do. We must support Ukraine to repair and restore its energy supplies, callously destroyed by endless Russian attacks that have plunged thousands into the cold and darkness.
“And we must intensify work to pursue the proposal for reparations loans secured against Russian sovereign assets, ensuring Ukraine has the means to defend itself for years to come.
“We must now all fight hard for peace.”
