Ukraine must be at heart of peace talks, says UK defence secretary after Trump and Putin call

Ukraine’s “voice must be at the heart” of any peace deal negotiations to end the war with Russia, the UK's defence secretary has said.

Speaking as Nato allies gathered in Brussels on Thursday (13 February), John Healey maintained that Russia "remains a threat well beyond Ukraine” after Donald Trump claimed that he and Vladimir Putin had agreed to begin talks on ending the conflict.

The US president said he agreed with his Russian counterpart to “work together, very closely” on ending the three-year conflict in a phone conversation on Wednesday.

"There can be no negotiation about Ukraine without Ukraine, and Ukraine’s voice must be at the heart of any talks," Mr Healey added.