UK, EU to ramp up pressure on Russia and boost defence initiatives

Britain and the European Union will ramp up pressure on Russia and boost defence initiatives, as the EU's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, meets British foreign minister David Lammy and defence minister John Healey in London on Tuesday. 

The talks will coordinate cooperation on Ukraine and discuss efforts to increase economic pressure on Russia, UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said in a statement on Monday. 

The discussions will also include stepping up action against hybrid threats such as cyberattacks, election interference and rampant Russian disinformation, the statement said. 

Kallas and Lammy will also set review efforts to boost European defence spending through 'innovative initiatives' and military readiness in support of Nato. 

"It's vital we upgrade our partnership with the EU and work together to bring an end to this war and deliver security of all of our citizens," Lammy said about the war in Ukraine. 

Conditions demanded by Russia to agree to a ceasefire show that Moscow does not really want peace, Kallas told reporters in Brussels on Monday. 

Earlier in the day, US President Donald Trump said he would speak to Russia's Vladimir Putin on Tuesday morning about ending the Ukraine war. 

Trump has been trying to win Putin's support for a 30-day ceasefire proposal that Ukraine accepted last week. 

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