PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak call with EU Commission President Von der Leyen [February 2024]
The press release issued by 18 February 2024.
The Prime Minister spoke to European Commission President, Ursula Von der Leyen, this afternoon.
Ahead of the second anniversary of Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, they underscored the importance of providing continuing support to the Ukrainian people. The Prime Minister welcomed the recent announcement that the EU will provide €50 billion support to Ukraine, and outlined the work the UK is doing through our security cooperation agreement.
The Prime Minister and President Von der Leyen expressed their outrage at the death of Alexei Navalny, and underscored the utmost importance of holding those responsible within the Russian system to account.
The Prime Minister updated President Von der Leyen on his recent conversations with the Israeli Prime Minister and the King of Jordan about the situation in Israel and Gaza. The Prime Minister and President Von der Leyen agreed on the paramount importance of significantly more aid reaching people who desperately need it in Gaza, and expressed their deep concern about the loss of civilian life occurring there.
The leaders also agreed on the importance of freedom of navigation and condemned the Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. They welcomed efforts such as Prosperity Guardian and Operation Aspides to restore stability and keep people safe.
The leaders welcomed the successful conclusion of negotiations on a new working arrangement between UK agencies and Frontex, which should be formalised in the coming days, as part of wider cooperation between the UK and EU on tackling illegal migration.
The leaders looked forward to speaking again soon.
