What's happened
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace told Ukraine that Britain is not Amazon when presented with a list of weapons demands, sparking criticism.
Why it matters
The incident highlights tensions between Western leaders and Ukraine, and raises questions about the UK's support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia.
What the papers say
The Independent accuses Ben Wallace of scolding Ukraine and reveals that he also advised Ukraine to show gratitude for international support. The Telegraph reports Rishi Sunak's dismissal of Wallace's comments and emphasizes Ukraine's existing gratitude for Western support. The sources differ in their characterization of the incident, with The Independent being more critical of Wallace's remarks.
How we got here
The Nato summit in Vilnius has revealed cracks between Western leaders and Ukraine, with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace's comments adding to the tensions.
More on these topics
-
Robert Ben Lobban Wallace is a British politician serving as Secretary of State for Defence since 24 July 2019. He previously was the UK’s longest-serving Minister of State for Security and Economic Crime from 2016 to 2019.
-
Rishi Sunak is a British politician serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer since February 2020. He was appointed Chancellor by the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, following the resignation of Sajid Javid during a Cabinet reshuffle in 2020.
-
Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy is a Ukrainian politician, actor and comedian who is the 6th and current president of Ukraine, serving since May 2019.
-
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which it borders to the east and north-east.
-
Ukrainians, historically also called Ruthenians, are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is by total population the seventh-largest nation in Europe and the second-largest among the East Slavs after the Russians.
-
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 North American and European countries.
-
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. is an American politician who is the 46th and current president of the United States. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice president from 2009 to 2017 and represented Delaware in the United States Senate