New UK foreign secretary holds first call in office with his Ukrainian counterpart

Ed Miliband, Foreign Secretary in the new UK government, has held his first call in office with Andrii Sybiha, acting Foreign Minister of Ukraine.

Miliband said his first phone call as Foreign Secretary was with Andrii Sybiha, who remains in office as acting foreign minister.

"I underlined the UK's steadfast and resolute commitment to the people of Ukraine. Ukraine is on the front line of the fight for the values of freedom and democracy in Europe," Miliband wrote on X.

For my first call as Foreign Secretary I was honoured to speak to @andrii_sybiha.

I underlined the UK’s steadfast and resolute commitment to the people of Ukraine.

Ukraine is on the frontline of the fight for the values of freedom and democracy in Europe.

– Ed Miliband (@Ed_Miliband) July 21, 2026

In his first statement as Foreign Secretary, Miliband promised to deepen ties with the EU, only then mentioning the UK's "vital alliance with the United States".

There were suggestions that Miliband's appointment as UK Foreign Secretary could potentially risk causing tensions with Washington.

On 20 July, new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham held his first call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. After the call, Zelenskyy said they planned to meet soon.