LONDON — Britain is rolling out the royal treatment for Volodymyr Zelenskyy again.
King Charles is set to receive the Ukrainian president for an audience as Kyiv faces renewed tensions with Donald Trump’s White House. It is the latest in a series of meetings where the monarch has sought to champion the Ukrainian leader at a critical moment.
Zelenskyy said in an X post Wednesday he would meet the king and British Prime Minister Andy Burnham during a visit to the U.K.
Charles hosted Zelenskyy at Sandringham in March 2025, days after Trump and Vice President JD Vance publicly berated the Ukrainian leader in the Oval Office, and at Windsor Castle earlier this year after Ukraine, the U.K., France and Germany published a joint statement calling for a “just and lasting” deal to end the war with Russia.
Zelenskyy will get a ceremonial guard from No.12 Company The Irish Guards when he arrives at Downing Street Wednesday afternoon, which a No. 10 spokesperson said is believed to be unprecedented.
The latest visit comes amid fresh strains over Trump’s approach to Russia and Ukraine, after he criticized Zelenskyy’s leadership and struck a deal with Moscow to lift sanctions on Russian diesel exports.
It will be the first visit to a European capital by the Ukrainian president since Trump made the announcement last Friday, and his second meeting with Burnham.
Burnham has so far refused to condemn the U.S. president for making a deal with Russia, telling MPs Wednesday he wants to “try and repair bridges so that the support comes back.”
In an overnight statement issued by No. 10 ahead of the visit, Burnham said: “Our rock-solid support to Ukraine is vital for keeping us safe here in the UK and ensuring those on the frontlines have the equipment they need to push back Russia.
“My message to the Ukrainian people could not be clearer, we are with you for as long as it takes, and we will go further and faster in our support to back your courageous fight for peace in Europe. It is not just the right thing to do, but it’s the necessary thing to do. Russia’s aggression cannot be allowed to succeed on our continent.”
Downing Street said the U.K. prime minister has asked ministers to draw up proposals for further sanctions, military aid, and fiscal packages to support Ukraine in the coming weeks.
Britain will deliver £45 million of surface-to-air missiles and implement a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports.
Britain will also accelerate deliveries of more than 5,000 Lightweight Multirole Missiles to Ukraine over the next four years with £1.6 billion in funding, Downing Street said.