Leeds is set to be twinned with the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, in an act of solidarity following the Russian invasion.

Kharkiv, which is the north-east of Ukraine, has been shelled repeatedly since the start of the war in February.

Leeds councillors unanimously agreed to explore forging a partnership with Kharkiv at a meeting on Wednesday, following recent talks between the two local authorities.

Announcing the move, Leeds City Council leader James Lewis said: “This is an act of solidarity and support for the people of of Kharkiv following the Russian invasion.

“In time we will hopefully be able to move this forward as a meaningful partnership between our two cities.”

Supporting the idea, Conservative Opposition leader, Andrew Carter, said: “I was going to say I had the pleasure of supporting this but pleasure is the wrong word.

“You can’t use the word ‘pleasure’ when the people in Ukraine and in Kharkiv have suffered in ways we can only imagine and the horrible consequences of an unprovoked invasion of their land.”

Built in the 17th century, Kharkiv is Ukraine’s second-largest city after the capital, Kiev, and is home to around 1.5m people.