According To Wallace, UK Forces Will Not Fight Russia

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has reaffirmed that no British troops will be sent to Ukraine to confront Russia.

Mr Wallace told the BBC that Ukraine would be backed instead to "fight every street with every piece of equipment we can supply to them."

Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday morning, and its forces have already pushed on Kyiv, the country's capital.

Russia failed to achieve its key objectives on the first day of its operation, according to Mr Wallace, losing 450 men.

Over the last month, UK government ministers have consistently stated that UK forces are unlikely to get involved in military action in Ukraine.

Mr Wallace stated that deploying British forces to fight in Ukraine, which is a British ally but not a member of the Nato military alliance, would lead to a European conflict.

He claimed that the UK had "done the next best thing" by training over 20,000 Ukrainians and providing them with "lethal capabilities, which they are currently using."

194 Ukrainians have been killed since the assault began in the early hours of Thursday, including 57 civilians, according to Armed Forces Minister James Heappey.

On Friday morning, Prime Minister Boris Johnson met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, promising greater help in the coming days.

Mr Zelensky stated that Ukraine "needs partners' support now more than ever" and asked for tougher sanctions.