Ukraine

Lord Skidelsky Excerpts

Friday 31st October 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Skidelsky (CB)]

My Lords, I do not know whether it is a punishment or a privilege to be put last in the list of Back-Bench speakers, as I invariably am when it comes to a debate on Ukraine. The noble Lord, Lord Coaker, was powerful and eloquent in opening, and it is clear that my noble friend Lord Barrow is going to be a great addition to our collective wisdom.

Two factors have upended the policy of successive British Governments: the arrival of Donald Trump in the White House, and the unexpected economic and military resilience of Russia. Until the end of last year, the agreed policy, as stated by then incoming Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, was that

“the British Government must leave the Kremlin with no doubt that it will support Kyiv for as long as it takes to achieve victory. Once Ukraine has prevailed, the United Kingdom should play a leading role in securing Ukraine’s place in NATO”.

I have heard this formula endlessly in the last three or four years. Can the noble Baroness tell us whether this is still the policy of the British Government? If not, why not? That policy, to my way of thinking, was always dishonest and in fact, morally repugnant, since we were never going to give Ukraine all it takes for victory, for the very good reason that any such policy carried an unacceptable risk of escalation. I am really worried by the insouciance of those noble Lords speaking today who talk about unleashing long-range missile attacks on the most heavily armed nuclear power in the world.

Now, after nearly four years of false pledges cashed in the lives of hundreds of thousands, we have reluctantly accepted that there is not going to be a Ukrainian victory anytime soon, and in fact, there is a very real prospect of Ukrainian defeat, as the noble Lord, Lord Tugendhat, pointed out. The real question now is, how can the coalition of the willing prevent this outcome? First came the suggestion that we would send in NATO peacekeepers to police a ceasefire, but our Government must have known that this would never be accepted. It would not be accepted by Russia and would not be accepted by the United States, which was supposed to provide a backstop. Can the noble Baroness tell us whether this obvious spoiling tactic is still on the table?

The latest plan is the so-called European Peace Facility, whose aim is to strengthen Ukraine’s war facility, a classic case of Orwellian “doublespeak”. The idea is that Europe should ramp up arms deliveries to Ukraine and put more pressure on Russia with new sanctions on oil exports, with loans coming from confiscated Russian assets. But no one thinking straight can believe that such measures, even if agreed and applied, will affect the course of the war in time to avert further territorial losses by Ukraine. In fact, a negotiated peace is the only way now of averting a Russian victory. That is my core position.

I want to be constructive, so I will suggest three ways in which our Government could help achieve a negotiated settlement. First, they should propose a demilitarised zone under a UN peacekeeping force to police a ceasefire. I am not nearly as pessimistic about the prospects of a ceasefire as some noble Lords have been—I remind the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Stirrup, that the armed pause of the Cold War lasted 50 years. China must also be brought into such an endeavour. It can exert much more leverage over Russia than we can. Trump seems to realise this, but all we seem able to do is talk about Chinese spies and underground tunnels. China is the missing piece in this whole process.

Secondly, we should start talking to Russian officials. Do not leave all the talking to the United States. To get a conversation going, we have to ignore the ICC arrest warrants, which in any case could be enforced only by a complete Russian defeat. Thirdly, we should urge UN-organised referenda in the four contested oblasts to allow the people who live there to decide democratically on their own future. Holding such referenda would offer both sides a credible and democratic pathway to end the conflict. Through initiatives of this kind, our Government could still turn a war mission into a peace mission. I beg Ministers to discover the courage to negotiate, for reasons of both realism and humanity.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank both Opposition Front Benches for their continued support for our approach to Ukraine. It is, perhaps uniquely, something that brings us all together—perhaps, as noble Lords suggested earlier, that is one of the reasons it does not excite the media and the public in a way that some of those issues on which we do not agree so readily sometimes do. I will resist the temptation to respond to the jibe from the noble Lord, Lord Callanan, about 100-year partnerships—we can get into that on Tuesday, and I look forward to it.

I will attempt to answer all the questions that have been put to me this afternoon. If I miss anything, it is an omission, and I will write to noble Lords—particularly my very good noble friend Lord Stansgate, who by my count asked me 28 questions in his contribution.

I pay tribute to the noble Lord, Lord Barrow, and his quite remarkable maiden speech. I was looking forward to it, as were many others in this House. We very much welcome him and look forward to what will be, I am sure, many more well-informed, thoughtful and immaculately crafted contributions in the years to come. I do not mind a bland speech from time to time, as long as it is well-informed and a point is being made, rather than a speech that is incredibly entertaining but does not actually say anything. I am sure that we will all enjoy listening to him and his future contributions.

As the Foreign Secretary said a few weeks after her visit to Kyiv:

“As Ukraine stands firm against Russia, the UK stands firm with Ukraine. Ukraine’s security is Europe’s security, and the security and stability of the whole of Europe is vital for our security here in the UK”.—[Official Report, Commons, 15/10/25; col. 390.]


To all those this afternoon who have been urging us to go further and faster, suggesting new measures and telling us to stay the course, we thank you. We encourage every noble Lord to stay resolute and to keep making this encouragement loudly and publicly. The points made by the noble Lord, Lord Kerr, the noble Baroness, Lady Suttie, and others on the need to secure public support are well made and are accepted by the Government.

Ukrainians have defended their country with courage for over three and a half years. They have made clear their desire for the war to end and for a just and lasting peace. While President Zelensky has affirmed his readiness for a ceasefire and meaningful talks, Putin’s response has been to launch some of the largest attacks seen in Europe since the height of the Second World War. Our focus remains on ensuring Ukraine gets the support it needs to stay in the fight and protect its cities and infrastructure from Russia’s increasingly brutal attacks. We are ramping up the pressure on Putin to force him to conclude that his military objectives are unachievable and that he should engage in talks that result in a sovereign, secure and independent Ukraine.

Shortly before the Russian delegation walked out of the UN Security Council chamber last month, our Foreign Secretary told Foreign Minister Lavrov directly that this is our aim. Despite throwing everything it can at Ukraine, Russia has achieved none of its objectives, while the costs of the war are piling up. Russia has gained less than 1% of Ukraine’s territory since November 2022 and sustained over a million casualties in the process, and its economy is stagnating and economic pressure is biting. The UK will continue to work with partners and allies to go further.

The noble Lord, Lord McConnell, and the noble Baroness, Lady Pidding, asked about the deported children. I sincerely thank them for making sure that that was part of the debate this afternoon. Children should never be pawns of war. Russia’s forcible deportation, adoption and militarisation of Ukrainian children is a despicable and systematic attempt to erase Ukrainian identity and with it Ukraine’s future. The UK raises this issue continually with our partners and allies. We are playing our full part in international efforts to reunite these children with their families, where they belong.

Last Friday, the Prime Minister welcomed President Zelensky to London, and he co-chaired a virtual meeting of the coalition of the willing with more than 20 leaders. The Prime Minister urged them to act, to take Russian oil and gas off the global market, to make progress on using immobilised Russian sovereign assets to unlock billions in funding for Ukraine, and to provide more long-range capabilities to ensure Ukraine can defend itself. The Prime Minister underlined the group’s support for President Trump’s position that the fighting must stop immediately and that the current line of contact should be the starting point for negotiations. Leaders reiterated their determination to put robust arrangements in place for Ukraine’s future security so it can deter and defend itself against any future attack. In response to the noble Baroness, Lady Goldie, and others, that includes the deployment of a multinational force to help secure Ukraine’s skies and seas and regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces once hostilities have ceased.

Leaders expressed their intent to address Ukraine’s pressing financial needs for 2026 and 2027, which includes, as many noble Lords have argued, working up options to use the full value of immobilised Russian sovereign assets so that Ukraine has the resources it needs to defend its territory and rebuild its armed forces.

The Prime Minister announced that we are accelerating our UK programme to provide Ukraine with more than 5,000 lightweight multirole missiles, aiming to deliver an additional 140 missiles ahead of schedule, which will help bolster Ukraine’s defences through the depths of winter in the wake of Russian attacks on energy infrastructure.

The noble Baroness, Lady Suttie, asked about NATO and the noble Lord, Lord Barrow, asked about defence investment. We have made a historic commitment to spend 5% of GDP on national security. This is a generational increase, underlining the UK’s commitment to national security and our leadership in NATO.

In response to the question from the noble Baroness, Lady Goldie, about non-military support, we work to support Ukraine to implement vital democratic, economic and security reforms. Allies will continue to support progress towards interoperability with NATO.

For months now, President Zelensky has said that he is ready for a ceasefire and to engage in meaningful talks with President Putin. Yet Putin continues to stall and play for time, rejecting the opportunity for talks to end the war while escalating his attacks against Ukraine. So, we continue to work closely with our international partners to keep Ukraine in the fight, enable it to defend itself against Russia’s attacks and ratchet up the pressure on Putin to end his illegal war.

Our most powerful tool to bring Putin to the negotiating table is mounting economic pressure applied through sanctions. Since July 2024, the Government have introduced almost 900 new sanctions designations against individuals, entities and ships. In our most recent package, announced earlier this month, we sanctioned 90 targets across Russia’s energy, financial and military sectors. That includes Russia’s two biggest oil producers—two of the largest in the world—Rosneft and Lukoil. We also announced our intention to ban the import of oil products refined in third countries from Russian-origin crude oil, further restricting the flow of funds to the Kremlin.

We have led international efforts to disrupt Russia’s shadow fleet, sanctioning over 520 shadow fleet vessels to date. This hits Russia’s ability to transport oil to third countries. The noble Lord, Lord Ricketts, referred to India. We welcome decisions taken by certain Indian refineries to suspend future purchases of Russian crude. We welcome the sanctions packages announced by the US and EU last week, with the US matching our sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil and the EU sanctioning Rosneft.

[Lord Skidelsky (CB)]

I thank the Minister for giving way. She has just produced some very impressive statistics on economic sanctions. What effect have they had?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

They are having a very real effect on the economy of Russia. I would perhaps describe it by saying that this is a battle, yes, on the front line, but it is also becoming a battle of military-industrial complex. Our ability to supply is at stake, and we are in competition with Russia. The more we can do to damage the Russian economy, the stronger we become. But we cannot do that alone. We need to do it alongside our partners and allies, and that is the work that our Prime Minister is engaged in.

Indeed, sanctions have denied Russia access to at least $450 billion, equivalent to an estimated two years of funding for this horrendous war. Noble Lords of course know that we do not speculate on future designations to maximise their impact, but they should be in no doubt that this Government will continue to ratchet up measures as we pile pressure on the Kremlin to change course.

In recent months, Russia has intensified attacks against Ukrainian civilians and civilian infrastructure. Russia has fired thousands of drones at Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, resulting in ever more civilian casualties. These strikes are having a devastating impact on communities enduring extreme hardship, compounding displacement, trauma and loss. Drones are being used to target humanitarian responders as well. A clearly marked UN convoy delivering humanitarian assistance to front-line communities was hit earlier this month. I am sure noble Lords will join me in paying tribute to the selfless humanitarian aid workers who continue to operate in high-risk environments, not just in Ukraine but in Gaza, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and elsewhere to reach those most in need, often under fire.

Several noble Lords asked specifically about women. The needs of women and girls have been embedded in our support for Ukraine, including funding for humanitarian aid, civil society and inclusion, sexual and reproductive health services and assistance to tackle gender-based violence. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Mott, for talking about children. UK funding delivered via partners is providing mental health and psychosocial support to Ukrainian rehabilitation professionals, the burns unit in Kyiv, Ukrainian Red Cross staff and volunteers, and adults and children in front-line oblasts. The British Army is supporting the morale and resilience of Ukrainian troops through the delivery of combat mental resilience practitioner training, and we will train 180 Ukrainian soldiers this year.

As winter begins to bite, Russia is stepping up its attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure once again. Russia’s aim is to plunge Ukrainians into cold and darkness, and it carried out its largest-ever attack on Ukraine’s gas infrastructure earlier this month. This threatens to deepen the humanitarian crisis for millions of people now facing a bitter winter without heat, electricity or access to basic services. That is why the Foreign Secretary announced £142 million in aid during her visit to Kyiv last month to support Ukraine through the winter and into next year. That includes £42 million for vital repairs to the electricity transmission network and critical protection for gas and power infrastructure as temperatures plunge, as well as £100 million in vital support for humanitarian assistance to get emergency relief to communities on the front line, a clear commitment that we stand with our Ukrainian friends in the face of Russia’s intensified attacks.

My noble friend Lord Coaker made an inspiring speech at the beginning of this debate and set out details of our military support as we continue to work with our Ukrainian partners to ensure that they have what they need to stay in the fight. In addition, the UK has been the leading bilateral donor since the start of the full-scale invasion, with a commitment of up to £1.2 billion to fund humanitarian assistance, energy resilience, stabilisation and reform, recovery and reconstruction. UK funding continues to provide urgent assistance to front-line communities to protect the most vulnerable. We are supporting efforts to bolster the rule of law, pursue justice and fight corruption. We are bolstering the growth and resilience of Ukraine’s economy, and we are helping Ukrainians to revitalise community services as they build more efficient and inclusive systems of social protection.

I conclude this debate by echoing the words of the Deputy Prime Minister at the United Nations General Assembly in New York just a few weeks ago:

“We must all strive for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, which maintains the integrity of our UN Charter and sees Ukraine emerge from Russia’s brutal war as a sovereign, secure and independent nation”.


As we speak, he said:

“President Putin rains down ever more drones and missiles on the Ukrainian people”,


yet President Zelensky continues to affirm his commitment to peace at every turn, and the Ukrainian people continue to demonstrate their resilience and determination to resist Russia’s aggression. As the Deputy Prime Minister said, our message to our Ukrainian friends is clear:

“We will stand with you today, tomorrow, and one hundred years from now”,


as we sustain the UK’s unwavering support for our shared future for decades to come.