The Albany Gazette - UK PM dismisses Russian threats as Ukraine allies gather in Kyiv

Air defence supplies are due to be the main priority at the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, jointly chaired by the leaders of France and Germany, who will participate remotely, and by Britain's Burnham.

Burnham has arrived in Kyiv for his first trip abroad since taking office, alongside other European leaders and EU Council President Antonio Costa.

"Despite Russia's outrageous threats to my country, we will continue our support for Ukraine's defence," Burnham said in a speech delivered on Ukraine's independence day and ahead of the meeting.

Russia has recently pounded Kyiv with ballistic missiles, ripping open apartment blocks and killing dozens in the capital.

The escalating Russian strikes have pushed civilian deaths to their highest levels since the first months of Moscow's 2022 invasion.

A Russian drone attack on Chernigiv, north of the capital, wounded 15 people, Ukraine emergency services said.

"Right now, things are really very difficult for all of us. But there is a force holding us firmly by the hand," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an address to mark the occasion, adding: "It is the strength of our mutual circle".

He called on allies to give Ukraine "everything it needs to stop this war".

- 'Pandora's box' -

Also Monday, the European Union said that it had released another 6.1 billion euros ($7.1 billion) in military aid for Ukraine to boost its air defences.

The finance is part of a 90 billion-euro loan, including 60 billion euros in military aid, that the EU has said will go to Ukraine.

Ahead of the talks, Ukraine has forged ahead with its campaign against Russia's logistics sites, hitting multiple warehouses belonging to e-commerce giant Ozon.

Ozon reported fires early Monday at its warehouses in Krasnodar and Makhachkala, both in southern Russia, adding that sites in Adygeysk and Nevinnomyssk were evacuated due to threats of drone attack.

Russian authorities also said debris from a Ukrainian drone attack killed two children and wounded nine others.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Saturday said Kyiv had "opened Pandora's box" by targeting Russia's economy and promised further escalation, including against Ukrainian agriculture.

Burnham is set to announce that the British government is authorising defence firm MBDA to release classified information needed to help Ukraine and France set up local production of the long-range SCALP missile.

The Kremlin accused London of preventing peace in Ukraine by handing the information to Kyiv and threatened to target and "destroy" facilities producing the missile in Ukraine.

On Saturday, French President Emmanuel Macron pledged Paris would deliver new interceptor missiles.

The ballistic missiles Russia has been firing in their dozens are incredibly fast and travel with a high-arching trajectory, making them difficult for Kyiv to intercept.

Ukraine relies on advanced systems -- chiefly, US Patriot interceptors -- to protect its skies.

But it has reported a shortage of Patriot interceptors since the United States and Israel went to war with Iran in February, diverting supplies.

- Ukraine's missiles shortfall -

Ahead of the meeting, Zelensky revealed the extent of the deficit, releasing usually closely guarded numbers.

He said deliveries of crucial Patriot interceptors had halved since 2023.

"Over the entire of 2023, Ukraine received 675 missiles, and over all of 2025 -- 364, even though Russian missile strikes have increased," Zelensky said.

The United States faces its own shortages of the missiles during its war on Iran and has resisted releasing large numbers to Ukraine.

Zelensky said Russia could produce around 100 ballistic missiles a month.

Ukraine, meanwhile, has accelerated its own campaign of long-range strikes on Russian energy and logistics sites -- including oil refineries and retail warehouses.

The Coalition of the Willing is a Franco-British initiative to deliver support to Ukraine and ramp up pressure on Russia.

Originally designed as a group of countries that would be willing to deploy peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the event a ceasefire was reached, it has become a parallel forum for marshalling support to Kyiv as uncertainty persists over US commitments under Donald Trump.

(A.Moore--TAG)