Munich conference live: Zelensky urges ‘unity’ to stop Russia after Starmer says Europe must be ‘ready to fight’
The Ukrainian president said ‘unity’ is the best ‘interceptor against Russia's aggressive plans’
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia fired 6,000 attack drones in January as he told the Munich Security Conference that European “unity” was his country’s best defence.
“I want you to understand the real scale of these attacks on Ukraine”, he told world leaders gathered at the summit.
Pointing to a chart displaying statistics from January, he said Ukraine had: “To defend against 6,000 attack drones, most of them were Shahid drones, and 150 plus Russian missiles of different types, and more than 5,000 glide bombs.
“And it’s like these every month. Imagine this over your own city.”
Europe must be ready to fight as it faces a growing threat from Russia, Sir Keir Starmer earlier told the conference.
He said leaders must not dither as “Russia has proved its appetite for aggression”.
He told the hall: “We must build our hard power, because that is the currency of the age.
“We must be able to deter aggression, and, yes, if necessary, we must be ready to fight.”
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Unity is best defence against Russia, Zelensky says
Discussing the defence of Ukraine, Zelensky tells the hall: “That is why while we invest in interceptors and protection, Russia invests in breaking unity between all of us, our unity with you, unity in Europe, unity in the Euro-Atlantic community, they want to break it.
“Why? Because our unity is the best interceptor against Russia’s aggressive plans – the best one – and we still have it.”
Starmer comes out fighting
Analysis by Kate Devlin, Whitehall Editor:
After the week from hell on the domestic front, Keir Starmer has come out fighting on the international stage - in more ways than one.
He had a message for Europe - that they had to be “ready to fight” Russia and should open up to greater economic and defence co-operation with the UK.
He rebuked Donald Trump for the President’s remarks that he did not know if the UK and other Nato countries would come to the US’s aid if needed.
He hit out at his party political rivals - Nigel Farage and the Greens - warning they would make the world a more dangerous place with their policies, as he called Reform UK “pro-Putin”.
And he had a message for his political enemies in his own party - that he was now “stronger” after the week’s failed attempt to oust him from office.
Zelensky sweeps aside Donald Trump’s latest ultimatum
By Sam Kiley, World Affairs Editor in Kyiv
Volodymyr Zelensky has swept aside Donald Trump’s latest ultimatum to agree to Russian terms on a peace deal for Ukraine.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, the Ukrainian president said that, while he would be happy to hold elections “within two months” of a successful ceasefire underpinned by security guarantees for Kyiv, if that’s what Russia and America wants, he’d also offer a ceasefire to Vladimir Putin if the Russian president agreed to stage fresh ballots in his country.
Addressing the summit, where he was greeted with a long standing ovation and where his speech was frequently interrupted by applause, the Ukrainian president appeared to set little store in the latest round of negotiations expected later this week.
“The Americans often return to the topic of concessions and too often those concessions are discussed in the context only of Ukraine, not Russia. Europe is practically not present at the table,” he said.
“It's a big mistake to my mind and it is, I think, we Ukrainians who are trying to bring Europe fully into the process so that Europe's interests and voice are taken into account.
“This is very important. And Ukraine keeps returning to one simple point. Peace can only be built on clear, clear security guarantees. Where there is no clear security system, war always returns,” he warned.
Putin has come under no military pressure from weapons supplied by the United States to Ukraine in a year since Trump stopped helping the embattled European democracy.
The UN Congress next week will consider a bill that would authorise the sale of Tomahawk missiles for long range attacks inside Russia but a decision on whether to sell them to Europe to pass on to Kyiv rests in the White House.
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte said that such weapons were essential to put real pressure on Putin, who only entered into any negotiation process after Ukraine was able to conduct deep strikes against his strategic oil supplies inside Russia.
Putin, the Ukrainian president said, was a “slave to war” – a view that is now widely shared in Nato outside the US where there is deep concern that while Putin is able to prosecute a war he will do so indefinitely.
It means Russia needs to come under more intense economic and military pressure to force him into concessions that, so far, have only been made by Ukraine.
“Can you imagine Putin without war? Be honest. Right now his focus is on Ukraine and no but he will not let other European nations go either,” Zelensky said.
Zelenksy appeals to Trump for 'strong security guarantees'
Rubio tells Europe Trump expects ‘seriousness and reciprocity’
Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State, has sought to mend transatlantic ties at the Munich Security Conference, despite also delivering a stark critique of Western nations’ missteps over the past four decades.
His address earlier on Saturday offered a significant contrast to a blistering attack on America’s European allies made by vice president JD Vance in 2025.
Mr Rubio insisted that the fate of the United States and Europe “will always be intertwined”, stating that Donald Trump “demands seriousness and reciprocity from our friends here in Europe” because “we care deeply about your future and ours”.
However, he also criticised the United Nations and warned that the "rules-based global order" that emerged after the Cold War had been a "dangerous delusion". The conference agenda is dominated by European defence and the future of the transatlantic relationship, particularly as America’s commitment to Nato faces scrutiny.
Zelensky: 'Putin is a slave to war'
Ukraine was being asked "too often" to make concessions, Zelensky says
Zelensky expressed hope US-brokered peace talks next week in Geneva will be serious and substantive, but he voiced concern that Ukraine was being asked "too often" to make concessions.
"We truly hope that the trilateral meetings next week will be serious, substantive, helpful for all us but honestly sometimes it feels like the sides are talking about completely different things," Zelensky said in his speech.
"The Americans often return to the topic of concessions and too often those concessions are discussed only in the context of Ukraine, not Russia."
Zelensky takes aim at Viktor Orban
Zelensky said the Hungarian leader “can think about how to grow his belly” rather than stopping Russian tanks returning to Budapest.
Ukraine is ready for a deal, Zelensky says
“Ukraine is ready for a deal that brings real peace to us, Ukraine and Europe”, Zelensky said as he closed his speech.
He called for the war to end with “dignity” for his nation, asking for the focus of peace talks to ensure that such a situation is not repeated.
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