Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has arrived in London for talks with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer as European countries look to keep international attention on Russia's invasion of Ukraine while the unfolding Iran war engages world leaders.
Starmer's office said that NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will also join the meeting at 10 Downing St to discuss peacemaking efforts in Ukraine and "the need to maintain sanctions pressure on Russia".
The meeting comes days after the US temporarily waived some Russian oil sanctions in a bid to ease pressure on global supplies triggered by the war in the Middle East, which was sparked by the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran starting on February 28.
Zelenskiy criticised the US move to ease sanctions, saying it would provide a windfall for Russia to keep up its attacks on Ukraine.
US President Donald Trump says he wants to secure a peace deal that ends the conflict.
But US-brokered talks between delegations from Russia and Ukraine, which so far have yielded no significant progress on key issues, have lost momentum amid the Middle East conflict.
At the same time, Trump has spurned Zelenskiy's offer of help for the United States and its Persian Gulf partners in fighting Iranian drones.
Ukraine has become one of the world's leading producers of high-tech, battle-tested drone interceptors.
UK officials say that Russia and Iran are collaborating on drone technology and tactics in the Middle East.
Drone combat experts from the United Kingdom and Ukraine have been sent to the region to help Iran's neighbours repel its drone attacks.
Starmer's office said the UK and Ukraine will sign a deal combining "Ukraine's expertise and the UK's industrial base to manufacture and supply drones and innovative capabilities".
The UK is also funding an "AI Center of Excellence" in conjunction with the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.
Zelenskiy, announcing his arrival in London on X, said his priorities are "more security and opportunities for Ukraine".
Starmer said in a statement that "drones, electronic warfare and rapid battlefield innovation are now central to national and economic security, and that has only been further magnified by the conflict in the Middle East".
"By deepening our defence partnerships, we are strengthening Ukraine's ability to defend itself from Russia's brutal, ongoing attacks, while ensuring the UK and our allies are better prepared to meet the threats of the future."
Russia's defence ministry said on Tuesday that its air defences intercepted and destroyed 206 Ukrainian drones overnight over Russian regions, the annexed Crimean peninsula and the Azov Sea.
A total of 40 intercepted drones were flying toward Moscow, the ministry said.
Asked about an increase in Ukrainian drone attacks on Moscow over the past few days, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that authorities in Kyiv were "continuing absolutely futile resistance" against Russia's invasion.