LONDON — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held talks with Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London on March 17, 2026. The two leaders agreed to a new partnership aimed at increasing drone supplies and cooperating with third countries.

Zelenskyy also addressed members of the British Parliament during the visit and met with King Charles in London.

Starmer's office said the leaders agreed on a new military-industrial partnership to combine Ukraine’s drone expertise with Britain’s manufacturing base to boost the supply of drones and to seek opportunities to cooperate with third countries. Zelenskyy and Starmer also forged an agreement to bolster supplies of drones to friendly countries.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte attended the talks between Starmer and Zelenskyy.

Speaking during the visit, Starmer said, “I think it’s really important that we are clear that the focus must remain on Ukraine.” He added, “There’s obviously a conflict in Iran going on, in the Middle East, but we can’t lose focus on what’s going on in Ukraine and the need for our support.”

Starmer also said, “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin can’t be the one who benefits from a conflict in Iran, whether that’s oil prices or the dropping of sanctions.” Britain and Starmer have supported Ukraine in its defense against Russia.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine had sent some 200 military experts to the Middle East at the request of partners including the United States to help Persian Gulf countries defend against Iranian drone attacks. “Russia then upgraded them, and now we have clear evidence that Iranian Shaheds used in the Middle East contain Russian components,” he said.

“The regimes in Russia and Iran are brothers in hatred and that is why they are brothers in weapons, and we want regimes built on hatred to never win in anything,” Zelenskyy said. Early in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, beginning in February 2022, Moscow used Iranian-supplied Shahed drones against Ukraine, and Russia later primarily used drones built in Russia using Iranian technology.

The United States and Israel are conducting a war against Iran. The Strait of Hormuz is a key Middle East oil transit route, and U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Starmer and NATO for their reluctance to send naval vessels to help open it. Iran has virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz by carrying out attacks and threatening further attacks.

The war in the Middle East appears to have halted U.S.-Ukraine-Russia talks aimed at ending the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Ending the Russian invasion of Ukraine has been a priority for Trump since he took office in January 2025. Little progress has been made on key issues such as control over Ukrainian territory in the Donbas, and Russia has shown few signs of readiness for compromise.

A new round of talks had been expected early this month but did not take place, and no date has been set for the next meeting.