Britain gives Ukraine £17million to fund critical repairs to the power plant after Russia drone attack

Chancellor John Healey said Labour’s commitment to the Ukrainian people was “unshakeable”, while Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said Britain will “stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and will do so until they prevail”.

The UK’s funding pledge is part of a wider international programme coordinated by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, working alongside the Ukrainian government and G7 donors.

A Russian drone strike last year damaged the New Safe Confinement (NSC or New Shelter), which was put in place in 2016 to confine the remains of the number 4 reactor unit.

The unit exploded on April 26, 1986, leading to deaths and a major release of radioactive material into the environment across Eastern Europe.

The world’s worst nuclear disaster led to the foundation of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, which covers roughly 1,000 square miles in total, split between Ukraine and Belarus.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused the Russians of deliberately trying to create a nuclear incident, as they would have been fully aware that the strikes would endanger the NSC’s power supply.

Announcing new funding for repairs at Chernobyl, Mr Healey said: “As the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Putin continues, our commitment to the Ukrainian people is unshakeable.

“We are curtailing the war chest funding Putin so desperately wants and backing the reconstruction of Ukraine that has suffered at the hands of his barbaric attacks.”

Mr Miliband added: “Our message to Putin is clear: we stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine and will do so until they prevail.

“Working with our allies, we are strengthening Ukraine’s security, raising the cost of Russia’s aggression and working towards a just and lasting peace.”

Prime Minister Andy Burnham hosted President Zelensky at Downing Street on Wednesday, when he told the Ukrainian president the UK was “behind you and that will not change”.

Mr Zelensky received an unprecedented honour guard made up of troops from the Irish Guards on his arrival at Downing Street

The meeting came during a period of strained relations between Ukraine and the US after Donald Trump eased sanctions on Russian diesel last week as high fuel prices in America threatened to overshadow November’s mid-term elections.

The UK responded by pledging to “maintain pressure on Russia”.

In recent days, President Trump has also suggested Ukraine needs a new leader and claimed Russian leader Vladimir Putin wants a peace deal more than Kyiv.

President Zelensky has also said use of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite communications system was “blocked” and that as a result “people will die”, admitting that he felt betrayed by PresidentTrump.

“It’s a pity that we are losing, we are losing a strong partner,” he told Piers Morgan Uncensored.

Starlink is used by Ukraine to defend against aerial attacks and for long-range drones targeting Russian sites.

However, Mr Musk has responded to President Zelensky’s claims.

He wrote on his X platform: “Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS.

“Starlink is a commercial service owned and controlled by SpaceX.

“Usage of Starlink is limited to civilian or defensive activities and cannot be used for offensive military action, as doing so would be inappropriate for a commercial company.”