King Charles and Queen Camilla have told of their ‘deepest admiration for the unbreakable courage of the Ukrainian people’ in an Independence Day letter to President Zelensky.
Taking to X on Sunday, the Ukrainian leader shared a screenshot of the letter from the Royal Family and said he was ‘grateful’ for his ‘kind words’.
In a heartfelt letter on Ukrainian Independence Day, King Charles wrote: ‘Dear Mr. President!
‘My wife and I sincerely congratulate you and the people of Ukraine on the occasion of Independence Day.
‘I keep feeling the greatest and deepest admiration for the unbreakable courage and spirit of the Ukrainian people. I remain hopeful that our countries will be able to further work closely together to achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.
‘My wife and I are delighted to extend our warmest and most sincere wishes to you and all Ukrainians for the coming year. King Charles III’.
In response, Zelensky said: ‘I am grateful to His Majesty King Charles III @RoyalFamily for his cordial wishes to all Ukrainians on our Independence Day.
‘His Majesty’s kind words are a true inspiration for our people during the difficult time of war.
Taking to X on Sunday, the Ukrainian leader shared a screengrab of the letter from the Royal Family and said he was ‘grateful’ for his ‘kind words’
King Charles and Queen Camilla told of their ‘deepest admiration for the unbreakable courage of the Ukrainian people’ in an Independence Day letter to President Zelensky
In response, Zelensky said: ‘I am grateful to His Majesty King Charles III @RoyalFamily for his cordial wishes to all Ukrainians on our Independence Day
‘We appreciate the United Kingdom’s leadership in supporting Ukraine and our just cause: to defend freedom from tyranny and ensure a lasting peace in Ukraine and throughout Europe’.
Zelensky also posted messages of his thanks to other world leaders who had taken to X to share words of encouragement and support on Sunday, including Ulf Kristersson, the Swedish Prime Minister, Karin Keller-Sutter, the Swiss President, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, and Xi Jinping, the President of China.
It comes as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Kyiv on Sunday to mark Ukrainian Independence Day.
‘On this Ukrainian Independence Day, and at this critical moment in their nation’s history, Canada is stepping up our support and our efforts towards a just and lasting peace for Ukraine,’ Carney wrote on X as he touched down in the capital.
The UK government has announced that Ukrainian flags will appear above Downing Street on Sunday in recognition of the anniversary.
UK Defence Secretary John Healey said: ‘We will continue to step up our support alongside allies, so that Ukraine can defend today and deter tomorrow.
‘In the face of ongoing Russian attacks, we must put Ukraine’s armed forces in the strongest possible position.
‘And as the push for peace continues, we must make the Ukrainians into the strongest possible deterrent to secure that future peace.’
The Ministry of Defence has also announced that British military experts will continue to train Ukrainian soldiers until at least the end of 2026, with an extension to Operation Interflex.
Operation Interflex is the codename given to the UK Armed Forces’ training programme, which has been created to develop and prepare Ukrainian recruits to fight their country’s Russian invaders.
But despite the country celebrating its declaration of independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Russian officials said that on Sunday morning a fire was put out at a nuclear power plant in Russia’s western Kursk region and air defences shot down a Ukrainian drone.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Kyiv on Sunday to mark Ukrainian Independence Day
There’s been a flurry of high-stakes diplomacy this month as US President Donald Trump jetted to Alaska for a face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 15
US President Donald Trump holds an image of him and Russian President Vladimir Putin from their meeting in Alaska, August 22, 2025
The drone detonated when it fell and damaged a transformer, but radiation levels were normal and there were no casualties, a post from the plant’s account on messaging app Telegram said.
The United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency has made repeated calls for both Russia and Ukraine to show maximum restraint around nuclear facilities in the war.
There’s been a flurry of high-stakes diplomacy this month as US President Donald Trump jetted to Alaska for a face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 15.
The summit was hailed as a potential breakthrough in the bloody Ukraine conflict.
But while both leaders emerged insisting the talks had been ‘a success,’ behind the scenes frustration is mounting – with Trump now openly venting his anger at the lack of progress.
The US President has warned he is weighing up dramatic options, including slapping Moscow with fresh economic sanctions, hitting it with punishing tariffs, or even walking away from the talks entirely.
‘I’m going to make a decision as to what we do and it’s going to be, it’s going to be a very important decision, and that’s whether or not it’s massive sanctions or massive tariffs or both, or we do nothing and say it’s your fight,’ Trump said on Friday.
On the other side, Zelensky has been pleading for an unconditional ceasefire, with strong backing from European allies.
But he has accused Moscow of blocking any chance of a face-to-face with Putin, claiming the Kremlin is ‘doing everything it can’ to stop peace.
Russia’s veteran foreign minister Sergei Lavrov hit back, insisting Putin is willing to meet Zelensky – but only ‘when the agenda is ready for a summit, and this agenda is not ready at all’.
