Starmer Accuses Russia of Delaying Ukraine Peace Agreement
LONDON (Reuters) -Russia is stalling progress towards a peace deal in Ukraine, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Thursday after a meeting with Western allies in Paris, adding that now was not the right time to lift sanctions against Moscow.
Starmer met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and leaders from the so-called 'coalition of the willing', a group of nations which are working to formulate a plan of support for Ukraine in the event of a a peace deal with Russia.
"We agreed here in Paris today that it's clear the Russians are filibustering," Starmer told a press conference.
"They are playing games and playing for time," he said.
"I don't want to put a hard deadline on this, but we need to see this developing in days and weeks, not months and months."
Starmer also said European allies would be ready to help put any peace deal into operation whatever its precise shape turns out to be.
He added that leaders at the meeting had "complete clarity that now is not the time for lifting of sanctions (against Russia), quite the contrary".
(Reporting by Catarina Demony, writing by Sam Tabahriti; editing by William James and Kate Holton)
