UK's Sunak speaks to von der Leyen, Zelenskyy ahead of Ukraine Recovery Conference

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday held talks with the head of the European Commission and the Ukrainian president, ahead of the Ukraine Recovery Conference scheduled to be held on June 21-22 in London, his office said.

Sunak and Ursula von der Leyen discussed efforts to mobilize global support for Ukraine and drive long-term public and private investment.

"The leaders also reflected on the tragic shipwreck in Greece last week and the brutal business model of people-smuggling gangs. They reiterated their commitment to continue working closely together to break the criminal enterprises driving illegal migration, including UK cooperation with the EU border agency Frontex," said a statement.

Sunak also reiterated UK's firm support to Kyiv during his talk with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and the two agreed that the conference is a "unique opportunity to underline the strong public and private sector support for Ukraine, and demonstrate the country’s transformation and ongoing reform."

For his part, Zelenskyy tweeted that they discussed Kyiv's defense needs to enhance capabilities on the battlefield, its NATO membership prospects and sanctions on Russia.

The Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023 will focus on mobilizing international support for Ukraine's economic and social stabilization and recovery from the effects of "Russian aggression," according to its website.

Broad participation of the international community, international financial institutions, the private sector and civil society is expected.

The first edition of the conference was held on July 4-5, 2022 in Lugano, Switzerland.

*Esra Tekin in Istanbul contributed to this story