- Prime Minister will address Munich Security Conference on the
importance of Western unity
- While in Germany he will meet world leaders to discuss
current tensions
-
Visit
comes as allies warn that an invasion of Ukraine could take
place at any moment
The Prime
Minister will travel to Germany today (Saturday) for discussions
with European allies amid increasing concern about the likelihood
of a further Russian invasion of Ukraine.
This week
the build-up of forces has continued despite Russian claims to
the contrary, with 7,000 more troops arriving on Ukraine’s border
in recent days. The UK and other allies have warned that military
action could take place at any moment and without warning.
At the
Munich Security Conference the Prime Minister will deliver a
speech calling on allies to stay united in the face of Russian
hostility. He will remind partners that, while there is still
time to persuade President Putin to stand down Russian troops,
the only prospect for this is if the western world speaks with
one voice to dissuade and deter.
While in
Munich, the Prime Minister will also meet a number of European
partners to discuss the current response. In recent days the
Prime Minister has spoken to the leaders of the United States,
France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Japan, Australia and elsewhere
about the ongoing crisis.
The
Prime Minister said:
“There is still
a chance to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, but it will require an
overwhelming display of western solidarity beyond anything we
have seen in recent history.
“Allies need to
speak with one voice to stress to President Putin the high price
he will pay for any further Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Diplomacy can still prevail.
“That is the
message I will take to Munich today as we redouble our efforts to
prevent a grave miscalculation which would devastate Ukraine,
Russia and the rest of Europe.”
The Munich
Security Conference is the world’s largest annual gathering of
international leaders and foreign policy experts. When the Prime
Minister addressed the conference last year he warned that
countries like Russia who seek to act with ‘reckless abandon’ to
harm our people must be met with the ‘immovable rock of
trans-Atlantic solidarity’.
One year on,
the Prime Minister will reiterate that message both in his speech
to the conference and in meetings with world leaders.
Notes to
Editors
