On October 24, 2025, London became the epicenter of a renewed Western effort to pressure Russia as Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was welcomed with full honors by King Charles III at Windsor Castle and then met with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and a formidable lineup of European and NATO leaders. The day’s events, marked by rare British autumn sunshine, were more than symbolic; they signaled a tightening circle of support around Ukraine as the war approaches its fourth year and Russia’s aggression shows no sign of abating.
Zelenskyy’s third visit to Britain this year underscored the urgency felt by Ukraine and its partners. After the ceremonial greeting at Windsor—complete with a royal salute and the Ukrainian national anthem—Zelenskyy headed to Downing Street. There, he joined Starmer, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, and about 20 other world leaders, some joining virtually, for a summit of the so-called “coalition of the willing.” Their mission: to find new ways to cripple Russia’s war machine and bolster Ukraine’s defense, both on the battlefield and in the economic sphere.
According to a statement from the British government, leaders aimed to “focus the world’s attention on how they can further strengthen Ukraine’s hand and cripple Russia’s ability to continue to wage war.” Starmer minced no words, condemning Russian President Vladimir Putin’s relentless attacks. “The only person involved in this conflict who does not want to stop the war is President Putin, and his depraved strikes on young children in a nursery this week make that crystal clear,” Starmer said. “Time and again we offer Putin the chance to end his needless invasion, to stop the killing and recall his troops, but he repeatedly rejects those proposals and any chance of peace.”
The coalition meeting took place against a backdrop of escalating violence. Russian forces continued daily attacks on Ukrainian cities, with drone and artillery strikes in the Kherson region killing two and injuring at least 17 on October 24, according to local authorities cited by BBC News. Meanwhile, Russian officials reported a Ukrainian drone strike on a Moscow suburb that injured five people, including a child. These tit-for-tat strikes have become grimly routine, with civilians often bearing the brunt.
The coalition’s strategy, as discussed in London, is to hit Russia where it hurts most: its finances. A major focus was on cutting off the revenue Russia earns from oil and gas exports, which continue to flow despite a barrage of Western sanctions. Moscow has managed to keep its “shadow fleet” of tankers moving oil to global buyers, notably China and India, at discounted prices. Zelenskyy and his allies are working to disincentivize these purchases, arguing that the profits directly fund Russia’s war effort.
President Trump, who has spent months trying to broker a ceasefire, took a new tack this week by sanctioning Russia’s two largest oil companies, Lukoil and Rosneft—the first such move since his return to office, as reported by The Guardian. The US sanctions, coordinated with the UK and the European Union, are intended to choke off a third of Russia’s federal budget revenue, which comes from oil. The effectiveness of these measures, however, hinges on whether China and India will curtail their purchases of Russian oil.
“We’ve been clear today, that we must respond. Working with the US, this coalition is determined to go further than ever, to ratchet up the pressure on Putin—from the battlefield to his war economy—because that is the only way to change his mind and push him back to the table,” Starmer said at a press conference after the summit, as quoted by CBS News.
Another hot topic was the use of frozen Russian assets. European authorities currently hold as much as $250 billion in Russian assets, with over $200 billion sitting in Belgium alone. Starmer and other leaders are pushing to use these funds to back loans and support Ukraine’s defense. Yet, as Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever pointed out, “Can this (plan) be legal? That is a very good question ... There are no clear answers.” Belgium’s critical position—since the assets are held at Euroclear, a Belgian institution—has stalled immediate action, with EU leaders deferring a decision until their next summit in December.
On the military front, Starmer announced that the UK would accelerate its missile delivery program, sending over 100 additional air defense missiles to Ukraine ahead of schedule. This is part of a broader $2.1 billion deal to supply more than 5,000 lightweight multirole missiles. These laser-guided weapons, with a range of about five miles, are designed primarily for defending Ukrainian airspace, a vital need as winter approaches and Russia steps up attacks on energy infrastructure.
While these defensive measures are welcome, Zelenskyy has been vocal in his plea for more powerful, long-range Western missiles—such as US Tomahawks, which can reach up to 1,000 miles. So far, Washington has declined to provide them, though the UK and France have previously supplied Storm Shadow and Scalp cruise missiles, which Ukraine has used to target Russian facilities, including a recent strike on a chemical plant in Bryansk.
“I think Putin’s strategy has been to wait for us [allies] to stop at some point, to give up. But of course, this will never happen,” Danish Prime Minister Frederiksen remarked, reflecting the coalition’s determination. NATO Secretary-General Rutte added, “The truth is that Putin is running out of money, troops and ideas.”
Energy security for Ukraine was another pressing concern. Russia’s repeated strikes on Ukraine’s natural gas fields and power plants have forced Kyiv to seek increased imports from Europe. Dutch Prime Minister Schoof pledged that the Netherlands would “increase financial and material support” for Ukraine’s energy needs, urging other partner nations to follow suit.
Meanwhile, the broader geopolitical context was impossible to ignore. On October 23, two Russian fighter jets breached Lithuanian NATO airspace, prompting NATO to scramble Spanish jets in response. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda called it “a blatant breach of international law and territorial integrity of Lithuania.” Russia denied any violation, insisting its jets were on “scheduled training flights.”
As the London summit wrapped up, Starmer and Zelenskyy were scheduled to address the press together, likely amplifying their call for more robust Western military support. The coalition’s resolve, however, faces legal, logistical, and diplomatic hurdles—not least the challenge of persuading global energy markets to turn away from Russian oil.
Despite these obstacles, the message from London was clear: Ukraine’s allies are not backing down. As the war grinds on, their efforts to tighten the economic and military noose around Russia are intensifying, with the hope that increased pressure will finally force Putin to reconsider his strategy—or at least bring him to the negotiating table. For now, the coalition’s unity stands as a bulwark against further aggression, even as the costs and risks continue to mount.
