UK to reopen embassy in Kyiv next week: PM Johnson

The UK government will reopen the British Embassy in war-torn Ukraine's capital city of Kyiv by next week, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed during his India visit on Friday.

The Embassy was forced to temporarily close down after Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.

“The extraordinary fortitude and success of [Ukraine] President Zelensky in resisting Russian forces in Kyiv means I can announce that very shortly, next week, we will reopen our embassy in Ukraine’s capital city,” Johnson told reporters addressing a press conference in New Delhi.

“I want to pay tribute to those British diplomats who remained in the region throughout this period,” he said.

A contingent of British staff remained in western Ukraine to provide humanitarian and other support.

The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said the British Embassy premises are currently being made secure before staff return, starting with the UK ambassador Melinda Simmons.

“The extraordinary fortitude and success of President Zelensky and the Ukrainian people in resisting Russian forces, means we will shortly be re-opening our British Embassy in Kyiv,” UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement in London.

“I want to pay tribute to the bravery and resilience of the Embassy team and their work throughout this period,” she said.

The FCDO said the travel advisory for the region continues to advise against all travel to Ukraine.

When its embassy closed in February, the FCDO had said that the mission was relocating temporarily and staff were operating from an embassy office in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv.

The move follows Boris Johnson’s surprise visit to Kyiv earlier this month and in the wake of several European countries, including Italy, Spain and France, and the European Union (EU) already reopening their missions in Kyiv. During his visit to Kyiv, Johnson met President Volodymyr Zelensky and pledged to give 100 million pounds worth of weapons to Ukraine.

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